


Songbird

by Katy_Stark



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alex doesn't deserve this shit, Alex is so done with Loki's shit, F/M, Jealousy, Kidnapping (Although not really), Loki doesn't deserve this shit, Protective Tony Stark, Romance, Sarcasm, Slow Burn, Soooo much sarcasm, canon compliant character death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-23
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2019-09-25 13:50:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 56
Words: 123,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17122556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katy_Stark/pseuds/Katy_Stark
Summary: "I am Loki, of Asgard, and I am burdened with glorious purpose.""Well, I am Alex, of Earth, and I am burdened with glorious sarcasm."A.K.A. don't study away from home. Ever. Like, never ever. Because it doesn't end well.





	1. Chapter 1

Right, okay, so, note to self: don't study away from home. Ever. Like, never ever. Because it doesn't end well.  
  
At least, if you count getting kidnapped by a vengeful god with a grudge that could try taking over the world because of a reason not to. Of course, that might just be me. Who am I kidding? That's pretty much a reason for every single person on Earth to not study away from home. And every  _not_ single person on earth.  
  
Huh? Huh? See what I did? See what I..? Ugh. I know. You aren't here for the humour, you're here for the story. The story of how I got kidnapped and at the same time managed to keep my neck in the right place when my mouth did the usual thing of running off. And well, like I said, studying away from home didn't end well for me, so I guess we should start there.  
  
  
It was a regular day in July in the SHIELD remote research facility. Agents were running about in the midst of an evacuation after what had been come to be known and categorised as the ' _Tesseract_ ' showed signs of unusual behaviour, enough to warrant a visit from Maria Hill and the Director Nick Fury himself. I was positioned outside the door waiting for them, in a usual lab coat, glasses, and clipboard, as the helicopter landed on the designated helipad outside the facility. Fury and Maria stepped off in turn and approached me.  
"How bad is it?" Fury had to raise his voice to be heard of the spinning blades of the helicopter.  
  
"That's the problem, sir. We don't know," I told him as calmly as I could manage with the alarms blaring behind me, leading the two inside and into the elevator down to the research level. "Dr. Selvig read an energy surge from the Tesseract four hours ago. It has been having these surges every so often for a little over a week now," I continued as Agent Coulson joined us in his usual suit and tie, walking alongside us as agents rushed past to evacuate themselves and anything they were carrying that was volatile.  
  
"NASA didn't authorise Selvig to go to test phase," Fury told me what I already knew as we walked down the corridor.  
  
"He wasn't testing it, he wasn't even in the room. Spontaneous advancement every time," I informed him, stepping out of the way of an agent pushing a large piece of equipment on a trolley past my way.  
  
"It just turns itself on?"  
  
"What are the reading levels now?" Fury brushed past another rushing agent. I passed him the electronic clipboard.  
  
"Climbing. When Selvig couldn't shut it down, we ordered the evac," I knew a slight panic was slipping through my voice but I couldn't exactly help it. No one here knew what was going on although both myself and Agent Barton had our suspicions along with Dr Selvig.  
  
"How long to get everyone out?"  
  
"Campus should be clear in the next half hour," Coulson spoke up, checking his watch before moving away from us to go check on the evacuation status and give a clearer update.  
  
"Sir, evacuation may be futile," I said as we turned the corner and started to head down the stairs to even further underground to the lab.  
  
"We should tell them to go back to sleep?" Fury rolled his eye, passing me back my clipboard as men and women in lab coats jogged past us with varying pieces of equipment.  
  
"If we can't control the Tesseract's energy, there may not be a minimum safe distance."  
  
"I need you to make sure that the phase 2 prototypes are shipped out," Fury ignored Maria.  
  
"Sir, is that really a priority right now?"  
  
"Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on. Clear out the tech below. Every piece of phase 2 on a truck and gone," Fury ordered, aimed at Maria and not myself, so Maria nodded and took two agents with her before heading in a separate direction to us. I wasn't aware of what Phase 2 was, but after my time studying here, I have learned I shouldn't ask questions and if I needed to know, I would know.  
  
We entered the lab and walked straight towards the Doctor.  
"Talk to me, doctor. Is there anything we know for certain?" Fury got straight to the point as we approached Selvig in the centre of the room by the holder housing the Tesseract.  
  
"The Tesseract is misbehaving." One of Selvig's workers attempted to stimulate the Tesseract with a tong. It was soon found in the opposite wall after a violent rejection to the object.  
  
"Is that supposed to be funny?"  
  
No, it's not funny at all. The Tesseract is not only active, she's... misbehaving." Selvig clearly couldn't find any other way to describe it. The blue box in question sparked and fizzed in its holder, not much different than it had been acting like for the last week or so when the changes to its behavior first started.  
  
"How soon until you pull the plug?"  
  
"She's an energy source. If we turn off the power, she turns it back on. If she reaches peak level..." I tried to explain, hand tightening slightly on the clipboard as I watched the Tesseract warp and moan in its holder.  
  
"We're prepared for this, Miss Callaway," Fury's voice didn't calm my anxiety. Not even a little. "Harnessing energy from space."  
  
"We don't have the harness." Selvig expressed more urgently. "My calculations are far from complete. And she's throwing off interference, radiation. Nothing harmful, low levels of gamma radiation."  
  
"That can be harmful." Fury looked around. "Where's Agent Barton?"  
  
"The Hawk?" Selvig rounded to his desk and computer. "Up in his nest, as usual." He gestured over his shoulder to where I could just make out Agent Barton in the shadows, sat high up on a balcony that was usually only ever used for light repairs. Fury radioed to him, and the agent was soon sliding down a zip-wire and joining us.  
  
"I gave you this detail so you could keep a close eye on things." Fury looked at Barton, stern, and his eye briefly flicked between him, the Tesseract, and me.  
  
"I see better from a distance," Barton responded, sharing a small smile with me at the joke. Agent Barton had been one of the few around here that was kind to me, since I was younger than most of the other workers here, and had only been here for a part of the summer unlike others who had been here for years.  
  
"Have you seen anything that might set this thing off?"  
  
"Doctor!" A NASA worker called for Selvig. "It’s spiking again." Selvig walked over to his computer, looking more than a little concerned. I checked my clipboard for the readings.  
  
"No one’s come and gone. And Selvig’s clean. No contacts, no IM. If there’s any tampering, sir, it wasn’t this end," Barton continued as I read the readings. My clipboard told me that this time, the energy surge coming from the Tesseract seemed to be more powerful than any of the others we'd experienced previous. I furrowed my brow.  
  
"At this end?" Fury seemed to take part in the confusion.  
  
"Yeah. The Cube is a doorway to the other end of space, right? Doors open from both sides." The Agent explained, and would have continued had the cube not sparked exceptionally violently without provocation from anyone in the room.  
  
"What’s that?"  
  
A rumbling noise emanated from the building around us. The walls started shaking and the ground seemed to be moving below us, tremors in the concrete foundation. The cube sparked again, and the blue light emitted from it began to glow brighter with every passing second. The Cube sparked more, bigger and bigger each time, blue sparks and lightning bolts crackled around the holder until finally, it happened. The thing that completely fucked up my summer.  
  
A beam of energy shot out of one side of the Tesseract, creating a wall of blue swirling light and energy, which when it finished sparking and spurting, opened into something that I could now recall as a portal. Then came the explosion of force, sending papers flying and lab equipment scattering across floors and desks until the wave stopped, and another beam of energy floated to the top of the lab chamber to manifest into a ball. And left on the platform itself was... something. No, not something, some _one_. Someone who was kneeling, head bowed to the floor, with a golden spear in their right hand, and donned in a mixture of gold, black, and green leather.  
  
Several of the lab guards approached the platform slowly, guns drawn and tracked on the form that was kneeling there. This thing, now I could see was a man with long, raven, slicked back hair, looked up from the floor, grinning in a way I could only describe as menacing. Then he moved to stand.  
  
Fury and Barton stared in shock, Selvig looked a mixture between in awe and horror.  
   
"Sir, please put down the spear!" Fury tried to control the situation calmly. I looked between the Director and this thing that had just popped out one end of space and into this room in clothes that were extraordinarily detailed and probably not from here.  
  
The man looked at his spear, more like a sceptre, looking for a second confused, and then destroyed all hope of peace along with some very important lab files when a stream of blue light aimed at the Director. Barton pushed Fury out the way, barely missing the light. The guards opened fire and I ducked for the nearest table, kicking it onto its side and taking cover. I heard gunfire all around, covering my body with my arms and hoping not to get shot in the head especially because, you know, that's important, as whatever the hell that thing was fought back. I could see just around the corner as the gunfire started to break off and slowly calm down, when i saw this thing approach Barton.  
  
The figure grabbed the arm holding a gun, and Barton struggled to pull it back.  
"You have heart." The British sounding voice told him before he touched the tip of the spear to Barton’s chest. From there, it was like blue energy flowed through his veins and up to is eyes, swirling in them until they became ice blue. He put his gun away as the man dropped his arm. I blinked. What was Barton doing? I watched the figure move to another agent in the lab and do the same. I felt sick. I ducked back behind the table, eyes going to where Fury was knelt by the original machine that held the cube, and put his fingers to his lips before gesturing at me. I nodded, hands bunching around fallen papers from the desk above as I kept quiet.  
  
Fury pulled the Cube from the machine it was in and shut it in a grey briefcase, gave me one last gesture to stay and be quiet, then moved to leave.  
  
"Please don’t," That same voice from the dark figure that appeared bare moments ago noticed Fury. "I still need that."  
  
"This doesn’t have to get any messier."  
  
"Of course it does. I’ve come too far for anything else," The man responded. I closed my eyes and focused on breathing and listening. "I am Loki, of Asgard. And I am burdened with glorious purpose," This man, now I knew called himself Loki, introduced himself.  
  
"Loki, brother of Thor?" I noticed Selvig still conscious, on the other side of the room, checking the pulse of NASA scientist by his feet.  
  
"We have no quarrel with your people."  
  
"An ant has no quarrel with a boot," The figure responded.  _Well, this is clearly a nice person._  
  
"You planning to step on us?" Fury continued, I chanced poking my head out just enough to watch the display.  
  
"I come with glad tidings." Loki smiled."Of a world made free."  
  
"Free from what?"  
  
"Freedom." Loki shrugged openly. I saw Selvig approaching Loki from behind. "Freedom is life’s great lie. Once you accept that, in your  heart--" Loki noticed too, turning and placing the spear tip on Selvig’s chest. "--you will know peace." The doctor's eyes took over the same glazed blue hue as Agent Barton's did.  _Oh, come on._  
  
"Yeah, you say peace. I kinda think you mean the other thing." Fury held onto the case in hand, eyes flicking briefly to me before back to the thing gathering in the ceiling.  
  
"Sir, Director Fury is stalling," Agent Barton spoke up.  _Dude, the hell?_ His eyes were stark blue and unblinking.  _Oh, right, mind control. "_ This place is about to blow and drop a hundred feet of rock on us. He means to bury us."  
  
"Like the pharaohs of old." Fury made a small gesture with his hands, a shooing motion. I realised he meant me and I started quietly crawling behind the fallen desks, keeping out of sight.  
  
"He’s right." I froze when Selvig moved to a desk in front of me, checking his computer. "The portal is collapsing in on itself. We’ve got maybe two minutes before this goes critical."  
  
"Well then." Loki hummed.  
  
I heard a gunshot and saw Fury drop to the floor, the case scattering close to me. I ducked as Barton's arm reached around the desk and picked it up before the footsteps of anyone still conscious started walking to the exit. I tried keeping out of sight, and in the process of doing so knocked over a medic tray with my foot which crashed to the floor in a much louder volume than I would have liked. Instantly, on instinct, I dropped and pretended to play dead, but the footsteps of everyone in the room had already stopped.  _Fuck._  
  
I stayed quiet and silent, eyes closed and even held my breathing as if it would make a difference at all. The sound of booted feet approached, the same pattern I had come to know was Barton's, and then felt my lab coat grabbed and pulled out from behind the desk. I remained playing dead. There was silence for a few more moments.  
  
"Sir, we need her," Barton's voice was kind of different, like you could hear the words being pulled out of him unwillingly. "She knows as much of this project as Director Fury and Dr Selvig," He added, thankfully not mentioning the little thing that him, Fury, and me were currently keeping to ourselves about me, not that it should matter to this Loki guy anyway.  
  
"Bring her here." Barton did on command, of course, and I was awkwardly dragged in my 'play dead' form over to this person. I was stopped and held up by my upper arms. "No need to act, sweetheart. I shan't hurt you."   
  
"Highly fucking doubt that." I opened my eyes regardless to this alien thing with the accent of a British person _._  His eyes this close I could tell were a mixture of green and blue, and he looked almost tired, red circles surrounding his eyes and small cuts on his cheeks. Those eyes squinted at me, and I would be lying if I said that wasn't at least a little scary.  
  
"Well, I suppose that was a lie. At least I assume that this hurts." He raised the spear in his hand.  _Well, today just keeps getting better._  He aimed it to my chest. A gunshot flew over his head, I looked to Fury with a gun in his hand and slowly moving around on one elbow. Loki looked to me, scowling, and commanded the others t follow him. "If she escapes your hold: kill her." He threw over his shoulder at Barton, who nodded, and proceeded to drag me along behind them. I had no choice but to follow them, or ruin my nice clean lab coat with the inside of my head.  
  
The halls were already cleared from the evacuation, and we were soon walking out under the closing gate. As we got to the parked jeeps, I saw Hill coming out from the back room.  
"We need these vehicles." Barton didn't let me go.  
  
"Who’s that?" She nodded at Loki, who stepped onto the back of the SHIELD truck. Selvage headed into the passenger side, holding the Tesseract case.  
  
"Didn't tell me." The agent pulled me towards the car. I mouthed 'help me' as we passed.   
  
"Hill! Do you copy?" Fury's voice came over the radio Hill wore. "Barton...has turned." Barton shoved me into the back, so carelessly that I hit my head on the far door, and my vision suddenly went very blurry.  _Oh, fuck me, can this get worse?_ As I gave myself a long-lasting speech about all the events that had led up to this situation, the last thing I saw before everything went completely black, was the male agent stepping into the driver’s seat of the pickup and the car driving off quickly with a fading sound of gunfire behind us. Hill was clearly following, and the rest of the building was now collapsing. _And all of this I could have avoided if I hadn't studied away from home this summer,_  is the last thought I had before my will be stay conscious just gave up and fucked off somewhere else for a while. 


	2. Intern

**Day 1 - 8:13 am**  
My brain had a heartbeat. It was a heavy thumping pulse and pain that made me tense up every two seconds, spreading through my head the more I began to return to the land of the conscious. It kinda felt like a Sunday morning hangover, just without the immediate need to throw up my tortured liver in a toilet. I moved my hand to the side of my head, trying to alleviate the pain, to discover there was something damp to the touch there. I opened my eyes, only to be met by a blinding light that made me involuntarily shut them again. The white glow on my eyelids suggested it was artificial lighting, and not daytime coming in through a window.  
  
I opened my eyes again, soon adjusting to the brightness, and pulled the damp thing from my head. It was a folded hand towel, luckily not stained with any blood. I looked around; my head had been propped up on a pillow, a thin cover draped over me, a room that was a shit excuse for a bedroom and I was dressed in SHIELD lab coat and uniform. Odd, until the pain in my head made my body tense up again and I started to remember what had happened.  
  
_SHIELD lab. Tesseract. Portal. Norse God. Not nice. Barton bad. Head hurts. Need drink. Alcohol preferred._  
  
I tossed the covers off and stood on asleep legs that had me falling to my knees in instant regret. Soon pulling myself off the floor, I threw the covers back in a 'good enough' state and wandered over to the door with the cloth in hand. I half expected it to be locked, so I stumbled through it with a little more force than needed. The corridor didn't belong to any SHIELD building I'd been in this summer, a freezing cold concrete hallway that led into a lab room. The men walking around with crystal blue eyes were an indication that it had been recently taken over by that green and black leather armour clad asshole. Speaking of whom, was nowhere in sight, however...  
   
"Put it over there." I followed the familiar voice to a nearby desk and computer, recognising the doctor almost instantly after working with him for at least seven weeks now. Right from the beginning of June. "Where did you find all these people?" He chuckled as men were directed to leave metal and materials over the workbenches sectioned off by a plastic screen door thing.  
  
"SHIELD has no shortage of enemies, Doctor." Barton brushed past me like he hadn't even seen me, us both standing on this side of the plastic screen. "This the stuff you need?"  
  
"Yeah. Iridium. It’s found in meteorites, it forms anti-protons. It’s very hard to get hold of." The doctor picked up the tube of the metal in his hands to inspect it closer.  
  
"Especially if SHIELD knows you need it." Barton replied, his voice near emotionless but then again, since when is it ever unless he's complaining about the SHIELD cafeteria food that day.  
  
"Well, I didn’t know." Selvig chuckled and put the tube of iridium back down. That much was true. I can't remember ever considering needing Iridium when working with the Tesseract, or anything else in the lab at SHIELD I'd been assigned to assist.  
  
Familiar footsteps behind me had my body tense up and freeze. They were different than any SHIELD agent or guard I'd heard and so that only left one thing.  
  
"Hey! This is wonderful." Selvig on the other hand seemed excited by the entrance of the tall, lanky thing called Loki. "The Tesseract has shown me so much. It’s- it’s more than knowledge, it’s truth." Selvig's grin was unsettling. I'd never seen him smile before, and this was not pleasant. At least in the lab he looked about as confused and miserable as the rest of us.  
  
"What did it show you Agent Barton?" I turned to look at the alien. He looked a lot better than when he did when he first appeared in the lab, eyes no longer tired and cuts that previously marked his cheeks and lips were healed up.  
  
"My next target."  
  
"Stick in the mud," Selvig laughed. "He’s got no soul. No wonder you chose this- this tomb to work in."  
  
"Well, the Radisson doesn’t have three levels of lead lined flooring between SHIELD and that Cube." Barton was still snappy, even with his mind gone on the wonk. I smiled a little as Selvig walked back to the machine he was working on.  
  
"I see why Fury chose you to guard it." Loki turned to Barton.  
  
"You’re going to have to contend with him sir. As long as he’s in the air, I can’t pin him down."  
  
"Well, that's good." Loki and Barton both turned to me with almost completely blank stares. "For him, not for you," I added.  
  
"Ah. The internal assistant." Green and black leather boy -that sounds weird- exchanged his blank stare for a grin.  
  
"I think you mean 'intern'." Loki's analogy was not correct in the slightest. And sounded kinda wrong. "And what the hell is going on here?" I looked around, knowing maybe half of what was going on in the labs and the other half not so much because it was not what the lab had been initially working on. Not to mention the weird sceptre that sat on one of the work benches nearby.  
  
"The dawn of a new legacy." Loki smirked. "Earth is to become greater than ever before under my rule, subjugated from the desperate need for power and systems to protect these people." He looked around at the lab agents running around mindlessly to carry out orders and work. "I was a King, I am a god, and I shall be King again, even if over your pathetic world."  
  
"Riiiiight," I nodded slowly. "And so my value to this project of mass delusion and destruction is?"  
  
"You are to work alongside Agent Barton and the doctor, help create my new world, and to harness the power of the Tesseract so I may use it to my will." Loki explained, voice leaving no room for misunderstanding or argument. And yet.  
  
"And what makes you think I'll help you?" I countered his orders instead of scurrying to obey them. Loki only chuckled, and picked up his sceptre in hand. Yeah, okay, that's a pretty good reason. Barton suddenly grabbed me. "Dude, what the hell? You're supposed to be my friend." Barton's grip never faltered as he held me in place. I struggled, feeling the material my labcoat starting to wear as I moved against his hold so much. The would-be king lifted the spear and I glared at him as he touched it to my chest.  
  
…  
  
Nothing.  
  
I didn't feel anything. What were you supposed to feel when being mind controlled? Loki furrowed his brow, touching my chest again with the spear and I, same as he, realised it wasn't working.  
"This usually works." He seemed confused and looked up at me.  
  
"Don't look at me, I don't know how the glowing staff of weirdness works." I shrugged at him. He growled something low in his throat and Barton released his grip on my arms. I rubbed them, sorely. "So, since that plan clearly hasn't worked, what's your next move, Space Man?" I tilted my head at him. His lips went into a thin line.  
  
"Help or die. I don't need my sceptre to make that happen." Loki put the sceptre back on the table.  
  
"Gonna have to try a little harder than that, dude. Not the first time I've faced that threat."  
  
"My name is Loki, and you will call me your King." He was growing irritated. I was honestly surprised he hadn't snapped my neck yet, if he was in fact as powerful as he looked and claimed. "And unless you choose to lend your assistance to the tidings of peace on your Earth..." Barton moved around me and grabbed the nearest assistant to him, wrapping an arm around their necks and putting a gun to their head. The person wasn't disturbed. "You may witness the death of every agent you see here, including the good Doctor," Loki smiled and shrugged towards them. "Choose wisely, Intern."  
  
_Okay. That's just being an ass._  
  
" _Fine,_ " I growled back at the entity, uncaring how powerful or whatever he was. Loki watched me for a good few seconds, and for a moment, I assumed he wouldn't let the NASA agent go with his life, but then he gave a gentle nod to Barton and he realised the man who didn't even seem mildly perturbed by the situation, probably because mind control = all rational thoughts sucked out of you like a vacuum. Oh well. At least I still have mine in check... for now.  
  
"Welcome to the revolution of your time, Intern." Loki turned and began to head out, Barton following at his heels like a puppy.  
  
"You could ask me my name, you know," I called out after him, and as expected, earned no response besides seeing him and Barton turn the corner and disappear. I rolled my eyes, "Ass," and turned to Dr Selvig for an explanation of what the hell I was supposed to be doing with my life other than saving it from a supposed ancient God.


	3. Curfew

**Day 1 -** **9:37pm**  
This was tedious. I'd been working on... whatever this thing was for hours. By the looks of the plans I was following, it seemed to be for some sort of machine, being built for what purpose, not a single clue. Something to speed up the invasion of my own home planet, probably. When it got to lunchtime, I was grumpy and complaining. The lab was hot, odd considering what we were working with and how far underground we were, and I was hangry, obvious by my quiet yet fairly frequent complaints mumbled at the workstation I was narrowly avoiding being shackled to. The God, whenever he passed through the lab, obviously had a problem with those complaints and constantly told me to quieten down. I argued that just like any other person in the room, and probably himself, that I needed food and water in order to function.  
  
I shut up considerably after everyone was given a burger and fries.  
  
But now it was late, having been over twelve hours since I'd woken up from my unconscious state this morning, and even though everyone else around here showed no signs of slowing down or even an edge of tiredness, I was almost falling asleep at my desk. Yeah, shocker, being tired before 10pm, but I had been working for those twelve hours. So this wasn't good. I realised that the others didn't require sleep considering their minds weren't focus on those needs, other than food because that was still biologically required, and I began to wonder why the hell I was still here if I was the only one who couldn't function the same way or to the same efficiency. That was the thought running through my mind as my head touched the desk and vision slowly went to black.  
  
I don't know how long after it was that something was shaking my shoulder. I looked up, blinking slowly and seeing the face of Earth's newest world villain stare back at me. I didn't say anything but pushed his hand off my shoulder which fell away easily. He seemed to study me for a moment and realised the same thing I had about my body's needs.  
"You are lucky Agent Barton speaks so highly of you, Intern." His voice was like a weird mix between silk and gravel. I don't know how else to describe it. "Come with me now if you wish for your coworkers to survive the night." He turned, his dress/cape/tunic thing swaying behind him as he walked briskly away. I quickly followed, no matter how tired, and he walked back down the corridor I came from that morning.  
  
I followed him up to the same door I knew from before, opening it and heading inside. I followed and stood in the middle of the room, lightly furnished with some type of light carpeted floor, a dresser, a bedside table and bed (obviously) as well as a door to the left that I guessed led to an en-suite bathroom.  
"This will be your room for the remainder of how long this plan will take." He started, looking around, most likely to make sure I couldn't escape somehow. There were no windows in here either. "As you are not bound by your mind, if you and your coworkers are to stay alive, I expect you to be in the lab by 8:00am every morning and you may sleep when you wish unless I say otherwise or unless your workload is not efficient."  
  
"Are you giving me a curfew? I'm twenty-two, not ten." I raised an eyebrow. He stared. I nodded instead. "Alright. Out by eight. But I don't see an alarm clock in here, dude."  
  
"'King' or 'sir' will do." Loki squinted before reaching into his pocket and holding something up for me to see. I quickly realised what it was and patted my lab coat pocket. I hadn't even known I was missing my phone, a little too preoccupied with the lanky figure staring at me with a grin. He held it out to me, and then I grew confused.  
  
 _Couldn't I use it to just..?_  
  
I took it and unlocked it.  
  
 _No service. Ah. And any way to chat through the internet was blocked from use. This guy knew what he was doing._  
  
"I hope you weren't looking through my photos, man."  
  
"I will warn you once more to call me by my title. And there was nothing of interest to me otherwise in your device," Loki's voice dropped low with his threat. "Clothes will be provided in your dresser. Try not to disobey me. Or you are aware of the consequences." He lifted his hand, and a delicately detailed knife apparated into it. Messaged received. I nodded and he nodded back, quickly disappearing, by shimmering golden magic and not by the door. I'd have to watch for that in the future.   
  
I sighed out, brushing my hands through my hair and dropping to the bed, glad I had my own thoughts. I paused. Why didn't it work? I pulled on the collar of my shirt and looked down.  _Oh. That makes sense. Of course,[that](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1785/9395/products/il_fullxfull.1143373133_63br_530x.jpg?v=1526333629) would be the thing that saves me._ It seemed his spear thingy didn't really communicate well with metal. I'm just glad SHIELD regulations had me putting the necklace underneath my shirt.  
  
I let go of my shirt and got up, looking around and in the drawers. There were simple pieces of clothing, plain shirts and jeans. It was a little strange how he knew my sizes but I thought I'd rather leave that question for another time as I got changed into something bed-worthy before setting an alarm on my phone and crawling into the bed. It was nothing luxurious but it could be a hell of a lot worse. And I was too tired to complain, anyway, or otherwise question how the hell I managed to get myself into this situation, and my brain soon succumbed to sleep.  
  
  
 **Day 2 - 07:58am**  
"Cutting it a little close, aren't we?" Barton's voice beside me as I reached my desk startled me. The guy moves like a hide-and-seek champion three years running.  
  
"Who are you, my father?" I rolled my eyes, throwing my still-damp hair up into a ponytail since drying it would mean coworker deaths.  
  
"No." Of course, he would answer that.  
  
"Then don't tell me how to run my life." I tightened the brunette ponytail and moved away to my desk to pick up where I left off. Barton stayed standing beside the desk like a mindless statue. He probably just reverted to that state when not filling out orders since he no longer felt the impulse to go perch in the rafters. I doubted this building had any anyway. "If you wanna be helpful, you could find me something for breakfast," I said, sitting. He was suddenly holding a breakfast bar out to me, the type SHIELD used to serve in their canteen mainly for those who worked early mornings or late nights. "Thank you." I blinked and took it from his hand, eating as I picked up a soldering iron.  
  
"Is there anything else you need?" He asked, voice still an emotionless void.  
  
"To get out of here would be nice..."  
  
"Not possible."  
  
"Worth a shot." I shrugged and turned back to my work. Barton, eventually, walked away, and I was left at my desk with Selvig behind me studying at his computer and other NASA and SHIELD enemies alike running around following the God's orders. I briefly wondered what he was doing since I couldn't see him around, but thought that might be for the best for now. Mornings made me cranky.  
  
 **10:00pm**  
I packed up at my station, deciding that my workload was 'sufficient' or whatever that was supposed to mean, and since Barton wasn't stopping me, I guessed I was fine. The day had carried on as normal, getting food and water delivered by the mindless SHIELD Agent watching over me like a hawk -no pun intended-, and building the beginnings of this machine that I still wasn't sure what the endgame was for. It was supposed to be some sort of container for the Tesseract, but to do what exactly I had no idea. Either way, the God was planning something big and didn't want any chance of me running off and telling anyone, so I was being kept as much in the dark as possible. I couldn't blame him, that's what I'd do if I was an insane extraterrestrial being trying to take over the same planet I was using minions from. Well, actually, I don't think I could be bothered to take over a whole planet. Unless something was forcing me.  
  
I moved away from the desk, heading back to my room, changing into the clothes left in the drawers for me and going to bed with my phone. Another thing I'd realised was the God's attention to the fact my phone battery was usually shit, and so he had done something to always keep it on. I'd thank him if it wasn't for the fact I was a dubious prisoner here to make sure no one died. But, oh well, kidnappees can't be choosers.


	4. Game on

**Day 4 - Two days later - 12:38pm**  
"Until then, I can't say more of his plans. Fury is someone that keeps very much to himself. Calls it 'compartmentalisation'. No one spills all the secrets because no one knows them all." Barton's voice wasn't far away from my workbench but I didn't look up from my work. "But, we know he’ll be putting together a team." His voice and two sets of footsteps grew closer as I connected electrodes with a welding wand.  
  
"Are they a threat?"  
  
"To each other more than likely. But if Fury can get ’em on track, and he might, they could throw some noise our way." His and the ass-of-a-God's voices stopped a few feet from the table. I kept my focus on my work.  
  
"You admire Fury."  
  
"He's got a clear line of sight."  
  
"Is that why you failed to kill him that night?" Loki's voice took on an edge of resentment. My hand twitched. I remembered that sight of the Director being shot to the floor only a few feet in front of me.  
  
"It might be. I was disoriented, and I’m not at my best with a gun."  
  
"Can you two have this conversation somewhere else, please?" I spoke calmly, tiny sparks fizzing when the wand touched metal. "I'm in the middle of something here and need to concentrate." I wiped my goggles free of outside condensation, looking at the two. They paused, both doing that creepy slow turn to me and saying nothing. I rolled my eyes and went back to the large pieces of metal that were the basic centrepiece of this machine for the Tesseract. I worked for a few seconds before looking back at the two men staring at me. "I thought it was only the  _machines_ that were supposed to short-circuit." I raised an eyebrow, standing up straight and holding the wand away from the machine and myself.  
  
"The intern continues to grace me with her sarcastic comments. How thoughtful." Loki's smile was less than friendly.  
  
"Can't believe you still haven't asked my name. Bit rude." I put the wand down in the spiral holder and turned it off.  
  
"You are not that much of a concern to know so personally."   
  
 _Well, then. Asshole._  
  
"If so, you should stop bothering me. If I'm still needed then I need to concentrate on the task to make sure this machine doesn't blow your royal ass up." I picked up the wand again.   
  
"I'm growing tired of your words. I may not be able to control your mind but I  _can_ silence your tongue." Loki apparated a knife into his hands and I'm not going to lie when I said I was slightly scared. I liked my tongue. Food tastes good. Even if being around here always seemed to make things have that aftertaste of metal. Barton was just stood there staring between us when I looked at him for help. Then I remembered his mind wasn't his own.  
  
Loki took a step towards me.  
  
"Do that and yoouuuu... loseyourpoint." I blurted out the first thing that came to mind. Loki looked at me, expectant of an explanation. "When you take over, are you just going to control all the mortals that annoy you? Kill all the mortals that don't fear you?" I was slightly relieved to see he didn't take another step to me but kept the blade in hand. "You can't just have the rest of the world in fear and it would be pointless to mind-control everyone that isn't instantly willing to follow your direction and vision."  _Keep improvising and don't get yourself killed._ "You want humans to look up to you, to respect you, to celebrate and idolise you. But you can't do that if everyone is too afraid of you."  
  
"Remember I said I'm growing weary of your words."  
  
"Look, you need to win the people of Earth over without mind controlling everyone. If you can convince them that you are a benevolent ruler and that the 'subjugation' you are giving them is the best thing for them, they will all fall in line without question." I shrugged gently.  
  
"And how do you suppose I do that?" The knife in his hand disappeared as his hands went to hold one another behind his back and I internally relaxed.  
  
"I don't know. You're the God here. Think of something." I shrugged. "But, if you wanted to try it out, try it on someone like me who has no filter for their mouth and a problem with authority. If you can win me over, you can win  _anyone_ on this planet over. Believe me."  
  
"You're asking me to convince you that I bring the glad tidings I claim?"  
  
"Consider it a challenge. Something to help pass the time it will take for the machine to be built." He seemed like the type to take any challenge to prove his worth, so I gave him one. And this seemed to be a good bargaining chip to keep me alive alongside everyone else. "Do we have an accord?" I held out my hand as if making a business deal. I half expected it to be sliced off. But instead, Loki just turned away and started walking down a random corridor, Barton following again at his heels like a dog being beckoned. I huffed, smiling slightly as I turned back to my desk to work, "Game on, thin, green, and sociopathic."  
  
  
 **The next day - Day 5 - 01:12pm**  
Loki didn't bother me for the rest of the day. I didn't even see a glimpse of green leather turning any corners around before I went to bed at a relatively normal time. Barton hadn't bothered me much either other than food and to check I wasn't bunking off. I wouldn't dare. I wasn't stupid. And that led up to now, eating the remains of my burger and fries as I worked on the machine part Selvig put in front of me less than a few hours ago. Piece by piece this thing was being built, but it would still take a while before it was fully functional.   
  
I wished someone would let me see the blueprints of what the completed thing would look like, it would save me welding things together and then having to stip them apart again because they aren't in the right place.  
  
I stuck another two fries in my mouth, looking at the blueprints currently on hand spread out over my desk and trying to find the correct screwdriver when something landed on my desk. At first, I thought I was still asleep, or the fumes around here were getting to my head when I realised that it had been a little black, furry fuzzball jumping onto my desk and on top of the blue papers. Not just any fuzzball that had me jumping back and yelling loud enough to draw attention from everyone around me though, but a small, fuzzy black  _cat_.  
  
I blinked.  
  
How the  _fuck_  did a cat get in here?  
  
The animal in question was just standing, or now sitting, on the papers on my desk and staring at me with big, bottle-green eyes. I rubbed my face and eyes specifically. The cat was still sat there looking up at me. Had those fries been a dodgy batch? Nah. But, still, why was there a cat of all animals to get in here sitting on my desk and looking up at me like I knew what the hell it was doing there?  
  
"Uh... hi?" I asked gently. The cat meowed. I nodded softly and looked at the [fuzzball](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/15/6b/44/156b44af03777fa560b2bcc53cf68bd9.jpg), glad I didn't have allergies as I took more notice of its short fur and neck. There was a golden collar wrapping around it, a woven material with an intricate design like what you would see on old flags or armour. There was no nameplate hanging from the centre though to identify it. And the eyes were a green shade that seemed familiar but I couldn't quite guess where from. I turned around. "Selvig?"  
  
"Yeah?" The Doctor looked up from his computer.  
  
"Do you have any ideas as to why there's a cat currently sitting on my desk and staring at me?"  
  
"Not a one." Selvig shrugged and went back to his work like this wasn't weird in the slightest. I turned back to the cat and thought on it.  
  
 _Maybe it was Loki's? But he wasn't exactly carrying a cat when he came in through the portal._  
  
I held out my hand just above its head, not touching it, and the cat looked at me curiously before pushing its head into my palm. I huffed softly with a smile as I stroked it all the way down its back and then removed my hand. The cat meowed and stood to try and follow my hand.  
  
"You are so cute." I smiled at it, and the cat narrowed its eyes as if disagreeing. I hummed in thought, suspicion growing in the back of my mind but I brushed it off, for now, turning back to the desk and eating the remainder of my fries. It seemed that the fuzzball was content on just sitting at the edge of my desk as I picked up the welding wand again. Even when the wand made sparks on metal the cat didn't flinch or move, but just seemed to be watching me and stretching out over top of the blueprints that I was sure were going to be covered in fur later. I shook my head, focusing back on my work and glad the cat didn't bother to disturb me or start begging for attention because even if this cat was Loki's, I'm sure he wouldn't be happy if I ignored the rest of my work just to pay attention to the fuzzball.


	5. Barton

**Later that night - 10:38pm**  
I most certainly did  _not_ scream when coming out of the bathroom to see the black fuzzball on the dresser, watching me walk out in bed-clothes after a shower. No, I did not. You're stupid. And so, when I did not scream at the cat who had somehow managed to open the room door and close it behind him, I tied up my hair and looked at it with crossed arms.  
  
"Why are you in my room?" I asked aloud as the cat's tail swished gently and it blinked lazily at me. I tossed my used folded clothes into a bag in the corner. "Comfortable?" I asked sarcastically. It meowed and showed sharp white teeth when it yawned. The thought struck me that this could have just been a figment of my imagination, and the fumes getting to me still, but it seemed doubtful. Even if it was, however, I would play along with my own imagination for now. "Yeah? Well, great. Now can you get out of my room so I can sleep?" I walked over to the door and opened it, indicating for the animal to leave. It continued to stare at me, lying on its side and looking like it wasn't going to move even for tuna. I made a couple more gestures for it to leave just in case words were the communication problem before giving up with a sigh, leaving the door open just a smidge, and headed to bed. At the same time I peeled back the covers to climb in, the cat hopped off the dresser and waddled out of the room like it owned the place. I groaned, standing back up again to close the door behind it and finally lying down in bed to go to sleep.  
  
  
 **Day 6 - 09:31am**  
I hadn't seen the cat since last night. I almost felt a loss at that. It seemed to be one of the few things that were surprising me around here, everything else was kind of just turning into 'oh, well, great'. Especially when Barton shot an arrow at the wall inches from my head when I tried to go explore. We could have been 50 feet underground or above ground from all I knew, there were no windows. But a good guess would be underground due to the foundations of the walls. Either way, clearly exploring was off the menu... for now.  
  
"Agent Barton?" A male voice called out behind me as I was looking over Selvig's computer, my welding goggles sitting on my head. The agent in question turned to the male NASA worker. "The King has requested these go to the loading bay." The worker handed over a crate of something I couldn't see to him before walking away quickly down a hallway and out of sight. Barton was soon walking away to another hall and disappearing along with the crate.  
  
There'd been a few people I'd heard use that phrasing. 'The King has requested'. And every time another agent heard those words they were instantly dropping what they were doing and following the order. It seemed that when the would-be King needed something doing when he wasn't around, other than the original thing they were brainwashed to do, that phrase was like a key. And hell if I wasn't going to try it.  
  
I watched the hallway the Hawk disappeared down, biting my lip as I thought over my theory. And there was only one way to find out if I was right. Good job I liked experimenting.  
  
"Barton?" I called out when I saw him turning the corner. His head snapped to me instantly. I gestured for him to come over and he did, taking a few strides to reach me. Well, here goes nothing. "The King has requested..." I didn't think of something to say before this. Think now. "...that you find me a can of my favourite soda."  
  
"I fail to believe that," Barton responded flatly. I honestly couldn't blame him. Was that the best I could think of?  
  
"Ask him if it will make you feel better. But that's kinda questioning orders, isn't it?" I shrugged my shoulder, pulling my welding goggles down over my eyes again and walking back to my desk.  
  
"He's indisposed at the moment," The Agent told me.   
  
"Then he won't want you to interrupt him," I said with a small smile of confidence. A smile that I'd been taught. "King's orders," I added for effect, watching as Barton watched me with those creepily icy blue eyes. I could tell he wasn't fully convinced, so I just turned away and went to my work with a fake innocence. I felt him stare at my head for a few seconds longer before the sounds of his boots across the floor told me he moved. I sighed, realising what a stupid idea that was.  
  
Until less than an hour later, a particular brand of soda appeared on my desk. I blinked, slightly concerned at the fact I'd given up on my theory and more than a bit confused at the fact it was there. Picking it up tentatively and feeling the weight, I glanced up at Barton who was already walking away from the desk. I briefly wondered where he got it as I opened the cap with a click and took a sip of what could have been something else entirely. As I swallowed, I groaned softly at the familiar taste of my favourite cherry and grape soda.  
  
 _Well, I'll be damned._  
  
I finished half the can before putting it down and feeling the buzz. It had been months since I'd been able to get a can since SHIELD didn't exactly supply it or permit you to go off-premises when working with them. And it tasted just as good as I remembered. Thank whoever Loki didn't actually cut my tongue out.  
  
As I finished the rest of the can, wiping my mouth, I hummed in thought. This would require more research, just to prove this wasn't a fluke. Barton could have just been pitying me if his brainwashing left any room for such a thing. But maybe I would ask for something a little bit more useful to me this time. What exactly though, I didn't yet have an idea for.  
  
 **3 hours later**  
"Is the spring work compatible?"  
  
"Eighty-seven percent."  
  
"Let's get it to one hundred then. Otherwise, we risk blowing up half the city with this thing." Selvig and I were moving around the lab along with some of the NASA workers as we started putting pieces of the machine together. We only had the centre done so far, but something was messing with the compatibility, and if that proceeded to be a problem, there might not be any of us  _here_ to see the God take over the Earth. Nevertheless, we cracked on and tried not to get electrocuted or fried alive, and I tried to stop pricking myself on the thin screwdriver in my hand every time I went to tighten something down.  
  
"Doctor." The silky gravel voice of the God followed his footsteps towards us.  
  
 _Ah, speaking of pricks._  
  
"Yes, Sir?" Selvig paused immediately, looking up from his laptop.  
  
"The Chitauri aren't exactly a patient race. I need a time." Loki smiled impatiently.  
  
"Two or so weeks more and everything should be in place." Selvig chuckled, putting another hunk of metal in front of me. "Things are going as smoothly as they can."  
  
"I'm glad. The master is depending on my guidance, after all."  
  
"I thought you were the leader of this little rebellion against Earth." I turned to Loki, who when I looked at him closely, was holding his spear and in similar appearance to when he first came through the Tesseract portal. His ice-blue eyes were tired, and his usual straight and tall stance slightly slouched.  
  
"I did tell you I had an army." He chuckled gently.  
  
"Apparently you're borrowing it."  
  
"Well, I exactly don't plan on needing it after the initial resistance of humanity to its loving ruler, as you challenged me to do with you."  
  
"Still borrowing your army," I reaffirmed. "Is it made of people like you or some other weird thing that comes out of a blue shimmering void?" I made jazz hands with a sarcastic smile.  
  
"There are no people like me. And this army is not made of the Frost Giants I share my birth with and despise so. Neither the Asgardians that raised me." Loki explained. I squinted my eyes as the information processed and I tried to understand what the hell that meant. "I suppose you wouldn't know that though, would you, intern?" His tone was mocking, but not entirely unhelpful as I realised something in his words.  
  
"No. I suppose I wouldn't," I said, more to myself than Loki, getting an idea. I looked up to him with a half-smile.  
  
"Correct?" He narrowed his eyes, suspecting something in my expression, before slowly turning and slinking away down another hallway, satisfied with the time limit given by Selvig. I watched him with a grin as he disappeared out of sight and I smirked, looking around the rest of the lab.  
  
"Barton!"


	6. Fuzzball

**The next day - 12:23pm**  
The spring work was being a dick. We had figured out the source of the problem and it turned out what was making the percentage unable to reach one hundred was one, single, solitary crossed wire somewhere in the machine that had already been welded into place. And now, with the tiniest tweezers known to man, I was attempting to uncross them without ending up like I stuck a fork in a toaster. I had managed to bend back the metal and grasp the red and yellow colour coded wires, checking the key on the blueprints once more before moving to delicately reattach them in the right place.  
  
 _And if I can just get the pressure right..._  
  
 ** _Thump._**  
  
I sprung up from the desk, concentration breaking away from my project with a pissed expression aimed at Barton for nearly making me blow us all to kingdom come. Then it softened as I realised what it was now sitting on the desk beside the latest part of the Tesseract machine.  
"As requested," Barton added confirmation as I put down my screwdriver and ran my fingers over the red leather cover, fraying at the edges and an indented design pressed into it. "If I can ask, why would Sir request a book on his own mythology stories?"  
  
"To check just how much the mortals know about him for when he attacks?" I opened the front cover of the tattered hardback, seeing the old-timey font start at the introduction paragraph promising not everything was correct and some were based on secondary sources and hearsay. Barton seemed satisfied with my answer and casually watched me as I began flicking gently through the pages to find the relevant source material I wanted. Footsteps fast approaching had me dropping the book on my foot in an attempt to hide it under the desk from the approaching God I was researching.  
  
 _Ow. Ow. Owie, owie, **owie**. What's that book made from? Ancient lead?_  
  
I managed to kick it under the desk with a less than graceful motion before standing as straight as I could with an aching foot, which was a challenge.  
  
"You were supposed to bring me the building plans over thirty minutes ago."  
  
"Sorry Sir, I was filling out your other orders." Barton excused himself confidently. Loki looked momentarily confused and I quickly felt my stomach sink. Loki narrowed his eyes at Barton, then me, then back to Barton.  
  
"Never mind any other orders I may have given you. I require you and the Doctor in the landing area immediately." The God ordered. I mentally relaxed and slowly nudged the leather bound book further under the desk. "What are you doing?" The God's head snapped to me.  
  
"Just listening. I'm supposed to listen to my ruler, correct?" I bullshitted on the spot.  
  
"If the conversation concerned you, yes." At least he was focused on correcting me more than hearing the lie. He seemed snappier than usual. His staff was missing. "Get back to work, Intern."  
  
"Can I have a please?" I crossed my arms at him. He narrowed his eyes. "Benevolent ruler, remember?" I smiled none too sweetly.  
  
" _Please_ get back to work, Intern." I forced out with as polite a smile as he could muster in his brooding mood.  
  
"That's all you had to say." I nodded and picked up what I had been doing before Barton dumped the encyclopedia of whatever this guy was onto my desk.  
  
"Thank you, Intern."  
  
"Are you going to ask for my name, yet?" I picked up my tool and carried on working.  
  
"Barton, Doctor, with me. Now." Loki demanded, ignoring my last question and striding out of the room with Barton and Selvig on his heels.  
  
I hoped I hadn't gotten them in too much trouble with the book.  
  
  
 **Later that night - 10:23pm**  
Well,  _that_  answered a few questions.  
  
I flipped over the page in the book, careful of the delicate condition of the paper and ink, as I read more about the God trying to take over my planet. I was now on the section for his magic description, having gone through the usual clothing and meanings of the Norse God in every day, folklore and other terms.  
  
 _'Loki possesses genius-level intelligence and has extensive training in magic, and possesses the ability to manipulate magical forces for a variety of purposes such as energy projection, illusion casting, and inter-dimensional teleportation. He has noted abilities in enhanced strength, stamina, durability enough to withstand high-calibre bullets without harm, and immunity to all known diseases and toxins, as well as resistance to magic and ageing.'_  
  
"Great, so he's a mostly eternal prick." I rubbed my eyes with one hand, reading on as I heard the door click open, and gently open as it was nudged. I furrowed my brow, glancing up from the page and watched as the head of the jet black furry fuzzball poked its curious head through. I  _swear_  I locked that door. My eyes followed as the cat trotted up to the end of my bed and jumped on, continuing to casually walk up to where I was half under the blanket, propped up against the wall behind the pillows. The cat stared at me, green eyes glistening, same as I stared back at it. Then, it laid down beside me, head nudging my leg as it laid there on top of the sheet like it owned the bed. Usual cat attitude. I observed it as it curled up beside me comfortably, watching me with slow blinking eyes. I opened my mouth to say something but quickly dismissed the sentence once I read the next line of the book in my lap.  
  
 _'Loki is an adept shapeshifter. He has been known to take on the forms of various animals such as horses or cats. However, he does not necessarily gain the abilities of whatever he turns into, although minor natural abilities such as flight in bird form tend to work.'_  
  
I paused, tilting my head as I looked into the emerald shade of the cats' eyes and recognised the colour as the same on Loki's armour. I could have slapped myself if it wouldn't give away the fact I knew who this was now, and I refrained from verbalising that idea. Might as well go along with the illusion.  
  
I read on for a little while, reading about family and a lot about Thor, his adoptive brother, as well as the 'Alfather Odin' and realising what he'd meant by Frost Giants and Asgardians. Well, it made more sense now than it did before, even if I wasn't entirely sure what the point to taking over Earth, or 'Midgard' as it was mentioned in the Norse texts, was. Also, Odin seems like kind of a dick, both in the context of his life and as a father to both the boys. Although, this was a limited text, and I couldn't exactly expect to get the full picture from a book written years before my own time.  
  
A ticklish sensation on the back of my hand made me leave my thoughts and glance at the black cat still curled up against my thigh. I moved my hand from holding the thicker side of the book, gently moving it towards the fuzzball fully expecting it to be swiped at, but instead, the cat  _Loki, I'm just calling him Loki now_  pushed his head into my palm. I huffed, stroking him from the head to the back and once again. His fur was soft and silky, quite like his voice, just without the rough edge of gravel. I suppose that would come if he bit me.  
  
"Where's your Master?" I asked as I pet him softly. The fuzzball only mewed gently as if disgusted by the idea of a master. I hadn't really thought he'd answer any differently. I hummed nonetheless and stroked his head. At least Loki seemed to be enjoying it. This may have been creepy to anyone else, but I didn't really give two shits. If he wasn't trying to kill me, who cares? I won't judge an extra-terrestrial for being extra-weird. "I need to sleep. So you better scat." I nodded to the door. Loki either ignored me or didn't hear me as he didn't stop purring as I stroked his fur. When I stopped, however, he meowed in what I discerned as disappointment. "Out. I need to sleep," I told him, putting the book in a drawer and lying down. Loki seemed to get the message and hopped off the bed... only to jump on top of the dresser only a few steps away from the desk. I sighed, knowing I wasn't about to get my hands scratched at for physically throwing him out.  
  
"You better stay there then. The bed is mine and you aren't sharing, no matter how cute you are." The cat just yawned at me and stretched out on the dresser. I rolled my eyes, settling down and rolling onto my side, closing my eyes. It felt weird trying to go to sleep with Loki, even in cat form, in my room. Though, I was glad when only a few minutes later from turning on my side, back to Loki, that I heard the patter sounds of paws on the floor, and then the door click closed. I decided then that I was definitely not going to tell him I knew. That would ruin the fun. Plus, it might turn out to be fun, after all, he can't tell me off for something I shared with a cat, right?


	7. Mischief

**Day 8 - 12:32pm**  
"Stop." I smacked my hand gently next to the black cat reaching for my leftover fries. The cat mewed and swatted its paw at me. "I said no." I crossed my arms, lifting the goggles on my eyes to rest on my head. Loki hissed at me, obviously not used to being told 'no'. "Hsss yourself," I responded with a raised eyebrow. The black fuzzball seemed to eye me for a moment, probably judging whether to swat at me again and then decided against it. Good.  _My_ fries. And aren't they bad for cats? I don't know. I've never owned a pet. Probably find some weird way to accidentally kill it or something within the first two weeks.  
  
I picked up the screwdriver from the side of the desk at the same time the sound of fluttering papers met my ears. I paused, tongue in cheek, and looked back at Loki, unimpressed.  
"Seriously?" I glanced at the blueprints and papers scattered across the floor, and then at the smug-ass transforming dickhead doing a cat-stretch in the dead centre of my desk. Loki just wobbled his head, and even then, I could practically hear that silky tone taunting me. I sighed, picking up the papers and putting them on the side of the desk before returning to screwing in this piece of the machine. Less than five seconds later, papers hit the floor and that cat looked increasingly tempting to give a kick up the ass too. But I wasn't one for animal abuse -God abuse? What does this count as?- and so kept my cool as Loki laid down on my desk again, tail swishing in triumph. "Real mature, Fuzzball." I bent over to pick the papers, tapping the edges against my thigh a few times and placed them on the opposite side of the desk this time. Then something occurred to me, and a teasing idea formed in mind as I glanced back at the ' _housepet_ ' lounging in front of me.  
  
"You should have a name," I stated out loud, catching the lazy-blinking fucker's attention. "I can't keep calling you Fuzzball, can I?" I asked rhetorically, but the God seemed to be listening, at least. I hummed, looking into the air, pretending to think. "Well, your collar is kind of old-fashioned, so maybe an old-fashioned name might suit you," I smirked at the ceiling, then looked to the cat. "How about 'Odin'?" The response was nothing short of an indignant screech of rejection, and I chuckled softly. "Alright, alright. Not Odin then." I held up my hands in surrender. The cat nodded and moved to simply sit on the workbench. "What about... 'Thor'?" Referencing the God's adopted brother gave me close to a hairball on my newly stacked papers, the cat hacking and aiming at the papers which I quickly moved to the opposite edge. "Okay, okay, not that either." I agreed. The names I was giving didn't suit him anyway. But there was one idea that I was having when he nudged a tool with his head and it barely missed my foot by half an inch, instead clattering on the floor with a dull thud in the way metal does against concrete. "You are just a little ball of mischief, aren't you?" I crossed my arms with a playful smile. The cat turned proud, holding his head high. I wasn't surprised, considering the God was of Mischief and Lies. "There we are. The perfect name." I proclaimed. Loki tilted his head at me. "I now dub you, the mysterious cat ' _Mischief_ '." I patted its head condescendingly, which he growled at, but didn't scratch me for. Especially when I itched that special place behind his ear and he practically melted onto the workbench.  
  
  
 **Later that day - 05:23pm**  
Loki had eventually disappeared off my desk, at the sight of Barton walking through a few hours before, actually. Or maybe it was because I stopped petting him in order to get on with the doomsday machine he was still making us build for him. Either way, the cat was gone and I was working, or taking a break now to finish another can of my favourite soda, courtesy of Barton and the helpful influencing trick I'd now picked up. The machine by this point was about a third of the way done, the centre now completed and able to hold the Tesseract without blowing us all up. At least, we thought. I wouldn't know considering I'd never worked on a doomsday device before.  
  
"Doctor, do you have the files?" Barton walked in from one of the random corridors that I still had no idea the purpose of. The doctor beside me moved a box from his own work desk to the centre with the machine lying spread on top of it.  
  
"Right here." He tapped the lid twice. I recognised it as the same kind of box SHIELD would often use for moving paperwork around. I'd had to handle a few myself around the upper floors of the Triskelion. "Contains everything the master could ever need to know about this thing." Selvig grinned, eyes still glazed over with that icy-blue stare. It made me uncomfortable to look at.  
  
"I need to get these to Sir." Barton gripped the box. That gave me an idea.  
  
"I'll do it." I volunteered quickly, no doubt looking suspicious as all hell. Barton gave me a blank stare.  
  
"The Sir has asked not to be disturbed for no reason." His grip didn't leave the box. Still, I attempted to pry it from his hands.  
  
"Great. I'm going, then." I smiled happily, eventually persuading it from his grasp. Barton appeared to short-circuited a moment, as if going through any orders given to him about what to do in this kind of situation, but I was already gone down the hallway he emerged from. A look over my shoulder confirmed the Hawk wasn't following me. Perfect.  
  
  
This place was so cold away from the lab. The lab had been purposefully cold to help with any risk of overheating but this was just freezing. And my lab coat wasn't exactly very warm. The lights that lit up the hallways didn't really give off any heat, despite their warm glow. And the hallways didn't seem to lead anywhere, except to random rooms filled with filing cabinets that had nothing to do with Loki or Earth's invasion, so now I was deciding that this was basically a fruitless endeavour as I turned down yet another corridor from the main room building which was definitely the lab. The sound of my converse against the stone floor was the only thing I could hear other than the distant sounds of the lab room, and I was officially giving up on my hope of finding anything interesting in this building.  
  
 _"What are you doing here, Intern?"_ The sudden voice was quickly followed by the box in my hands hitting the floor in surprise. I didn't squeak in surprise. I did not. But I did turn to see the tall God standing directly behind me. "You are never supposed to leave your desk to go exploring unauthorised." He spoke further, his voice slightly raspy and his face resembling that of a tired, snarling dog.  
  
"Technically you've never made that a rule--"  
  
"I shouldn't have to." Loki cut me off, quickly. He was definitely snappier than I was used to. I squinted. "I trust you to remain in the lab, unsupervised by me personally, and to work at the task I have set you in agreement that I don't just make things simpler and take over your mind like I am considering doing this moment." The grasp on his staff tightened, and I felt my own anger spike with it, royal highness be damned.  
  
"What a kind ruler(!)" The sarcasm was obvious as the tension. "I didn't expect such a higher being to be able to lose his temper so quickly." Loki squinted his eyes at me, as if telling me to back off, but fuck that, I stood my ground, crossing my arms and sent the same look right back at him. The stare stayed the same for a good few moments, so much I began questioning if that had been a good move, especially since he seemed so angry already. But then he smiled, bowing his head and taking a step back. I didn't know if that was better or worse.  
  
"My sincerest apologies, Intern," Loki smirked with his head inclined. Definitely not sincere, even if his silky tone which now seemed to lose its gravel-like undertone suggested otherwise. "I hope you find my words towards you much less threatening than they first appeared." He looked tired again, the same way he usually did when he had his sceptre on-hand.  
  
"I do." I found myself agreeing without thinking. I blinked at my own actions, confused. Is this what the book had meant by 'Silver Tongue'? It's... oddly hypnotic. Yeah, shocker, that's what its supposed to be. Loki noticed, and grinned in a way that creeped me out.  
  
"I was just a little unnerved by your sudden appearance." Loki talked in that same smooth tone that would melt butter. "If you wanted to explore, you could have just asked." His smile matched his tone.  
  
"You're never around to ask," I replied honestly in a lot less hostile tone than before. "So I took it upon myself to do so, instead."  
  
"And are doing a marvellous job at carrying out Barton's errands for him in the process." His emerald eyes flicked to where the box had spread out over the floor, files and papers fluttered in a pattern they weren't previously. "Pick those up, please," He instructed softly. My mind was already reaching for them before I could rethink my actions. Damn evil tongue. Still, I continued to clean up and put the lid back on the box, standing with it in my hands. "Do you know what these are?"  
  
"Not a single clue." I shook my head. Loki hummed and opened the box, pulling out a file a few down in the box and opened the cover. The brand was SHIELD's marking the front with the regular black eagle logo. "These are files about every worker in this building. Barton, the good Doctor... you." He flipped a page in the file. I read the name at the top as Agent Bartons.  
  
"You have yet to learn my name. And I doubt you can figure out which one is mine. My file isn't marked 'Intern', you know," I reminded him, slightly proudly. I knew my file, along with a few of the NASA workers, didn't have photo's attached for safety reasons. And I doubted he'd bothered to ask Barton. That theory was confirmed when his eyes flicked to him and the edge of his smile wilted on his thin lips. He slid the file back into the box. "Why did you want these, anyway?" He took the box from my hands with his free one and it disappeared with a shimmer of green.  
  
"I'm trying to learn more about the people I have working for me," Loki responded coolly. "If I'm going to take over this planet, I might as well do what I enjoy doing in order to learn more about it. Reading. Even if it isn't with as much interest to it as I would take to a regular book."  
  
"You like to read?" I asked, slightly surprised. He nodded softly. I thought for a second. "I don't mind a bit of reading. I prefer science but I can't resist a fantasy book."  
  
"I can say I agree," Loki responded, his tone changing slightly. I tilted my head, studying his face as his eyes had drifted off to the side of me, but he wasn't looking at anything in particular. The moment ended as soon as it began, lifting his spear to rest the end on the floor by his side as he held it. "Now, if you are done exploring, I do have other matters to attend to, as do you."  
  
"What matters are you attending to? I can't think of a single thing that you'd be doing in these halls to occupy yourself unless there's a magical room/library around here. I doubt any phone signal in the world could reach us, we're so far underground." I stepped around myself in a circle as I talked before looking back at Loki again. He only smiled, twisted away, and began strolling down the hall from which he had suddenly, or perhaps magically, appeared behind me to jumpscare me. I furrowed my brow.  
  
"Aren't we?"


	8. Grade-A Sociopath

**Two days later - Day 10 - 10:27am**  
 _`'Cause I may be bad but I'm perfectly good at it  
Sex in the air, I don't care, I love the smell of it  
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but--`_  
  
I paused, hand holding the pen stopping in its path.  
  
"Barton, can you finish this lyric for me, please?" I held the simple-style notebook up in front of his face and the Agent read my chicken scratch handwriting.  
  
" _'Chains and whips excite me'_." His monotone answer made me snort a laugh and go back to writing the remaining lyric of the chorus on the page. I had already known that, but just hearing Barton say it gave me a little ray of sunshine to my otherwise drab day.  
  
The Hawk had managed to find me a small notebook and pen for myself, as per my request, and as I usually would when I was bored or struggling for inspiration, I was writing out song lyrics. Don't act like you've never done it before. It's not that weird. And I wouldn't have dared writing out those lyrics on the blueprints around me, and though I had considered it, I didn't want to confuse or otherwise annoy Loki by writing songs about sex all over the plans for his world domination machine. So, the notebook it was.  
  
I put the pen down after writing the rest of the words out and closed the book, deciding that was enough of a break to get back to work again. Good timing too, as soon enough a black fuzzball was exploring my worktop looking for something to mess around with. I'd learned to put the spare papers and plans on Selvig's desk and save myself the bother of the previous day. So instead, as I warmed up the soldering iron, pulling on my gloves, the cat started nosing around my notebook. I picked up the metal strips for soldering as Loki managed to open the front page by pushing his nose underneath the small flap of the front, pushing it to the side to reveal my introductory statement.  
  
 _`The random scribblings of 'The Intern'  
Anyone else but me: _ _piss_ _off and get a life.`_  
  
My handwriting was not the neatest, but still readable. It had to be considering the times I had to write reports for SHIELD papers and files, even though most stuff was on electronic databases now. It was in a cursive style, drummed into me by elementary school, but otherwise just regular and boring.  
  
Loki sniffed around the front page, and I had to smile as the fact I'd been smart enough not to write my name, or that cat would have been out of the bag fairly quickly. I wouldn't make it so easy for him. If he was going to be stubborn, I was going to be just as stubborn, if not more so.  
  
Loki meowed at me. I smiled and stroked him with a gloved hand as I waited for the iron. I hadn't realised I was humming until Loki made another noise and I paused, realising I'd been humming the same song I'd been writing the lyrics to and had been stuck in my head from since I woke up this morning. But he didn't seem to mind and looked to even be listening along. I chuckled, going back to humming the tune as I stopped petting him and picked up the iron and metal instead. Loki made a pouting noise and I rolled my eyes, continuing to hum the song as he sat and watched me work, keeping far enough away he didn't manage to burn his fur, but would sometimes watch the small puffs of steam and smoke curl in the air.

 

**The next morning - 02:43am**   
_Thunder boomed and I tensed. Blue energy shot up towards the sky in a beam, cracking a literal hole in the sky open, bringing through an army of flying aliens that descended on the city. Lightning crackled and fizzed, making me flinch and cover my eyes. There were distant screams and explosions around me, flaring up as energy blasts hit the city streets outside of the Stark Tower. A place I felt almost safe outside of. I watched the hole in the sky grow larger, and six separate colours flash before my eyes: blue, yellow, red, purple, green, orange. Then the sight of an exploding ship the aliens had descended from spreading across the cosmos._

_"Alex!" A familiar voice. My father's voice, called out from the scene, my vision returning to the city streets. "Alex!" His voice again, a yell that I couldn't track the location of as I spun in a circle, narrowly avoiding a ship that crashed beside me. The alien on it crawled up to its feet and aimed its weapon right at me._

_"Alexandra!" A different name called out that time, but it was still familiar. I reached out to it before I saw my father fall._

"Dad!" I shot up from the bed, blinking and breathing hard as my body ripped itself from its sleeping state. I panted, sat up with my head in my hands as I tried to calm myself down. I felt sticky, covered in a cold sweat that was never a nice feeling, and an uneasiness in my stomach. The nightmare was quickly fading away, but I remembered the details. The Tesseract's power, the cosmos and rest of the universe, bright lightning flashing, dad calling for me, the alien, and the ultimate destruction of the planet. Possibly not even in that order, my mind was mixing things up already.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed, standing on not-yet-awake legs and stumbling to the bathroom, splashing my face with cold water and calming myself as I breathed into the hand towel provided. I shook my head clear and looked at myself in the mirror. I looked like shit, but then, what's new? I stood up straight, brushing strands of hair that had come loose from the bobble back behind my ears. Tired green eyes blinked at me in the mirror, and I shook my head again, putting the toilet lid down and sitting on it, leaning on the sink for support as my legs gave way. I hated nightmares, and that one just made no sense. I had no idea what half of it had meant, or if had meant anything at all.

As the cold sweat began drying on my skin, that sticky feeling stayed with me. I didn't like it. I reached for the shower, turning on the spray and locating a larger towel, stripping and standing under the spray, letting the feeling calm me down and relax my mind.

I didn't sleep for the rest of the morning.  
 

 **Later that day -** **01:26pm**  
I'd been feeling weird all day. It was like the itch from my cold sweat followed me when I headed into the lab that day. And with the Tesseract sitting just across the way in its case, it was almost like it was staring at me while I worked. But still, I pushed on, trying to ignore what I saw in my head this morning and making a note to think about it when I wasn't working with things that if they went in the wrong places would electrocute me to death. Even then, I started to lose focus throughout the day, and then time began blurring together, my only thoughts and distractions either scribbling random thoughts down in my notebook or working on the machine. And even that seemed like it couldn't keep my attention for long.  
  
 _"Are you even listening to me?"_ Was the question that brought my mind back into focus. I looked up from my work to the green God of Mischief staring at me with narrowed eyes. When had he even entered the room?  
  
"Not really. I didn't even realise you were next to me until you spoke if I'm honest," I answered truthfully, pen in my hand flicking up and down in a fidgeting motion. Loki looked me up and down, looking at my form bent at the waist and elbows resting on the worktable, hearing in my tone that I wasn't my usual snappy or otherwise sarcastic self.  
  
"You seem out of sorts."  
  
"Do I?" I stared at the machine.  
  
"Angry, almost."  
  
"Well, maybe that's because you're going to destroy my planet." I stood up straight. "Maybe its because you're going to kill a hell of a lot of people with your alien army. Maybe its because you're a Grade A Sociopath using a great source of power to destroy and enslave mankind." I crossed my arms with a set jaw. "So yeah, I'm out of sorts. And I have a..." I tapped my pen against the part of the machine I was working on, rather than hitting the pen against it like I wanted to. "I have a right to be angry about it." I stared at the metal that held no mirror image for me, just a dull shine from the reflection of the light above it. I wasn't even angry about it, just... I didn't even know. Uncomfortable?  
  
"You've seen it, haven't you?" Loki's voice was calm and calculating, gravel edge missing. "The fate of the world you hold dear?" I glanced at him. "It hasn't shown you a pretty sight, has it?"  
  
 _'It touches people in different ways' Loki had said. The Tesseract had 'shown me' what would come of the destruction._  
  
I breathed in through my nose, then let it out again, looking back at the machine on the desk and picking up the spanner to my right.  
  
"You didn't seem to have so much of a problem with it until this point."  
  
"I've always had a problem with it. But seeing it first hand proved to me that you are never going to be a benevolent ruler, no matter what you do." I tightened the bolts in the metal pieces. "Consider me thoroughly unconvinced, along with the rest of humanity. Game over," I added sourly, not being as gentle or careful as I would normally when working. Loki was silent behind me, and I didn't bother to look at him as I moved around the machine parts to attach them to one another. "You know, I don't see why you just don't build this yourself. Why are any of us even here? Why am I still here? If you're so bent on wanting to kill me, why don't you just do it?" I mumbled out questions as I worked with grit teeth.  
  
"Go back to bed, Intern." The command was gentle and soothing. The spanner was back on the bench and my feet had started taking me to my room before I could process his words. I made myself stop and turn back.  
  
"Stop doing that."  
  
"Doing what?"  
  
"You know 'what'." I marched back towards the workbench, picking up my tool again and continuing where he made me leave off. "Leave me alone." I felt brave enough to say, even with the knowledge that he could snap my neck in an instant after giving him the order. But I didn't care. I didn't feel like I could handle looking at him or hearing his tone. There was a dead silence in the room, save for a few shrieks of metal and buzzing of electric around the lab.  
  
"You have permission to return to your bedside whenever you feel like doing, regardless of workload completed." Loki's last words were before he disappeared in a shimmering veil of gold and green. Figures. He hadn't even been there for real. Just an apparition. I just shook my head, going back to working on the machine I so wanted to rip apart, and being thankful that my neck was still in its correct position for the time being.


	9. Blowtorch

**The next day - Day 12 - 11:14am**  
Loki hadn't disturbed me for the rest of the day. Not even in cat form after I took a shower and went to bed. I was almost thankful he didn't snap my neck and left me alone as I asked, and I guess I did have to appreciate at least a little that he had seemed to show some concern after learning about my nightmare. But I was still on the edge for the rest of the day, especially when I recalled the sound of my father's voice calling in a panic to me. I was reminded of the fact I hadn't seen him or my mother since the start of the summer, and though I wasn't usually the kind of person who always needed to see or talk to their parents, being isolated here reminded how long it had been since I'd last seen them. Oh well, maybe I'd see them later. Maybe.  
  
For now, I had to focus on gelling these pieces of the machine together with a blowtorch and making sure I didn't singe my eyebrows off in the process. Goggles and gloves on, unlike everyone else in the room who apparently being mind controlled, meant all sense of safety went out the window, I ignored the sparks and carefully focused on the red burning metal moulding together by a line from top to bottom that i couldn't afford to screw up.  
  
 _"Intern."_  Of course, as soon as the thought crosses my mind, tall, green, and psycho approaches me.  
  
"Not right now, Loki, I'm in the middle of something," I tell him, halfway down the welding line.  
  
"Yes, now. I need to talk with you and while you are here, you listen to me." He continued talking.  
  
"You really know how to pick your moments, don't you?"  
  
"Patience is not in my nature when it comes to you."  
  
"Sais everybody I meet."  
  
"Put down your tool, cease the snappy remarks and listen to me, Your King."  
  
"I swear, if you keep disturbing me, I don't care what you're the King or God of, I will weld your ass to that chair in the corner so I can work in peace." I held up the blowtorch, gesturing to a random metal chair.  
  
"Get that out of my face."  
  
"It's not in your face, it's in my hand."  
  
"Get what's in your hand out of my face when I'm talking to you." He demanded, jaw set and teeth together.  
  
I raised an eyebrow, pressing my lips into a line before switching the torch back on and finishing the welding line as slowly as I could manage. Only then did I turn the torch off, putting it on the desk and unplugging it from the power, moving my goggles onto my head and taking my gloves off in order to see Loki's pissed off face just get that little more pissed off by waiting on me.   
  
"What are you doing here, Loki?" I finally acknowledged him as I held my gloves and goggles.  
  
"I felt the need to check on you after yesterday's events." He relaxed his jaw and icy eyes.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because I care for your wellbeing," Loki said. I rolled my eyes with a huff, moving to another workbench mainly for papers. "I told you when I first met you that I shan't hurt you." He followed me.  
  
" _'Shan't'_  sounds way too much like ' _shank_ ' to believe you." I began shuffling blueprints and papers.  
  
"I didn't mean for the Tesseract to affect you."  
  
"Then why not warn me that it could do that to me? It would be something important to drop into conversation at some time, you know." I put a hand on my hip, glaring at him. Loki crossed his arms.  
  
"How was I supposed to know it would happen? I can’t see into the future. I’m not a witch."   
  
"You knew it could happen. Well done. Yeah. Really shows how much you care." I took the blueprints back to the machine table, spreading them out.  
  
"If you want me to prove that I can care and be benevolent then you could try and at least make this easier for me." Loki followed behind me again.  
  
"Why? Why should I make it easier for you?" I shrugged one shoulder. "I told you at the start of this that if you could win me over, you could win anyone over. Did you honestly expect it to be so easy?" The resounding silence I got in return wasn't that surprising. "Wow. You really need to work on your view of humans, dude."  
  
"And how do you suggest I do that?" The God gave me a fake smile and tilted his head.  
  
"Read a book?" I suggested. It was his turn to scoff and look away. "I'm serious. There can't have been many books from Earth on Asgard. Try to study our cultures. Familiarise yourself with the world you're interrupting. Or maybe be nice to people - learn their likes and dislikes." I went back to rearranging the papers. "Why are you even taking over Earth, anyway? We aren't that special. You've got all nine realms to chose from, why this one? I struggle to see your ulterior motives with this endeavour."  
  
"You seem to know a lot more about this than I remember reciting to you." As much as he was avoiding the question, that didn't mean I didn't feel slight panic as I realised my big mouth had slipped up again.  
  
"Barton answers my questions." I shrugged in cover-up response. I'd had to lie to my parents a few times on the fly like this that it was becoming second nature. Though maybe that wasn't the best idea in the face of the  _God_ of Lies. But, even if he detected that, he said nothing of it. "And you're stalling." I picked back up on my previous question.  
  
"I don't like to reveal my plans before I implement them." He smiled calmly.   
  
"Other than to Nick Fury, Clint Barton, Eric Selvig, and myself, right?" I pressed my lips into a line and tilted my head. Loki lost his smile. I gained it.  
  
"A requirement I can suffer." Loki regained his composure quickly.  
  
"Does your master approve of that?" I crossed my arms with a raised eyebrow. I don't think I'd ever felt a room grow colder in such a short time before now.   
  
"Choose your next words carefully, Intern." Loki's eyes turned icy, as did his tone. I realised that maybe I had been getting too comfortable with the guy who could snap his fingers and send a dagger into my eye. Or make good on his threat to cut out my tongue. So, feeling the chill in the air starting to get nippy, I moved us on.  
  
"Apology accepted," I told him, softly. He took a breath in and out, studying me. I nodded and took a step back. "Can I please get back to my work?" I nodded to the machine. Loki didn't really respond further than inclining his head an inch. "Thank you." A sincere thanks helped me get over the fear of having my neck snapped and put my gloves back on to work around the hot metal of the machine. Loki lingered for a few moments.  
  
"I really did not expect for the Tesseract to do that to you."  
  
"It's fine." I insisted, taking a tool to start screwing the iridium plates into the machine. Loki hummed a low note before his cape tunic thing disappeared from my peripherals and his light footsteps disappeared into another area of the building. I breathed out a long breath, relaxing a little, and wondering why his last sentence had sounded so soft and sincere, and why it was lingering in my head.  
  
  
 **Later that night - 01:24am**  
I was in the lab later than usual. Or at least that's what the clock on my phone said. I couldn't sleep, I was having one of those nights. Though I may have stopped working at somewhere around the midnight mark, I was scrawling random thoughts and ideas down in my notebook as I tried to tire myself out. I wasn't surprised by how much of the notebook was already filled, considering how many I had filled up the same way in my drawers at home. Those notebooks were usually the fault of late nights and early mornings when my brain wouldn't shut the hell up or my brain wouldn't shut off when I got a new project in mind.  
  
I was very much like my father that way. My mother less so, as she was usually tired after her days out at work in her office. I suppose I also get my sense of humour from my dad, but my mother's logic and judgement. I'm kind of glad for that because my dad wasn't exactly one to think everything through before he did it, and I at least had the decency to think  _'is this going to be bad?'_ before following it up most of the time with _'fuck it. It will be a laugh and a good pub story'_.  
  
My arm falling off the edge of the desk jolted me out of my thoughts.  
  
"You're still awake." Or maybe it was Loki's voice from the other side of the room. I glanced over to see him standing by the opening to a corridor as if he'd stopped walking as soon as he noticed me.  
  
"Couldn't sleep," I told him with an obvious undertone of tiredness in my voice. "You as well?" I didn't exactly know the sleeping pattern of Asgardians or Frost Giants.  
  
"Is this a regular thing among mortals?" Loki gently approached the desk, ignoring my question.  
  
"Sometimes." I leaned back in my seat, hearing my back crack from being bent over so long. I rested my cheek on my fist and looked up at the blue-eyed being. "What do you usually do when you can't sleep?" I asked him. Even with other NASA agents occasionally passing through the lab, without me working or muttering to myself about doomsday devices and raven-haired pricks, the lab seemed strangely quiet. And this must have registered with Loki at the taken aback look his eyes held for a second before masking it with the usual icy look.  
  
"Take a walk around the palace. Sometimes I'll walk through the gardens or read a book." Loki perched himself on the edge of my desk, which was the first time I'd ever seen him sit down for the entirety of the time being here.  
  
"Well, since I'm pretty sure there's nothing green growing in this building other than you and I have no books to read, a walk to and from this desk is my last option." I stood up, feeling my muscles stretch out as I reached my arms above my head. "Considering you told me off last time for walking around the building."  
  
"That was without permission," Loki answered. I huffed and nodded. "I'm giving you permission this time." He declared in the same soft tone.  
  
"Excuse me?" I blinked.  
  
"You have permission to wander freely." He reaffirmed what I thought was just my tired brain lying to me. I looked at him as I dropped my arms back down by my sides.  
  
"Sounds like somebody's starting to like meeeee." I gave him a smile that would usually come around either from overtiredness or tipsiness.  
  
"Don't mistake my kindness for fondness. I still expect you back here well-rested for 08:00am."  
  
"You like me." I grinned and started walking away before he could protest. Though I didn't really find any major secret rooms or things that were more interesting than what I already knew was there from the last time, I can say it did help put me to sleep better than if I had stayed at my desk that night.


	10. Psychopath

**The next day - Day 13 - 12:18pm**  
_'Used:  
Space Man  
Dude  
Dick  
Tall, green, and psycho  
Leather boy (do not use again)  
Asshole  
Mischief  
  
To be used:  
Daddy issues  
Tricky_  
_Lokimotion_  
_Low-key`_  
  
  
I was pleasantly surprised if a little concerned when it wasn't Barton delivering my food for me at lunch, but instead the God of Mischief himself. I flipped over the page in the notebook I'd been writing in as I noticed him approaching, trying to subtly slide it away in hopes of him not noticing the list of nicknames. Loki dropped the regular food box down on the table, and I noticed two things.  
  
One was that it wasn't a regular burger and fries like I would normally get, but instead, my favourite Chinese food place delivery box was sitting on my desk. And when I looked inside, it had my favourite order sitting and steaming there. I blinked, glancing at Loki who was only looking at me in a way I would describe as analytical: as if trying to guess whether he'd done well. He must have asked Barton for my order because I don't remember ever mentioning my favourite Chinese place, or the dish, to the lanky extraterrestrial.  
  
The second thing was the thing sitting underneath the Chinese takeout box. It was a small book, thicker than my notebook, with a cinnamon brown cover including gold details running around the corners and up the spine. There was no title on the cover, but when I opened it to the first page, I saw the index was in English.  
  
"This is an old book I no longer have a use for. I finished it a while ago." He shrugged. "You said you liked the fantasy genre, correct?" Loki asked clearly and I looked at him. He was hinting at but not directly saying that he'd given it to me for me to read and enjoy. Aw. He was  _trying_.  
  
"That was a nice thought, thank you." I thanked him regardless, picking up the food carton and using the plastic chopsticks that accompanied it to pick out a chicken piece. I could have moaned at the familiar taste of heaven as I swallowed. I grinned and put the box down, moving it away from the papers to make sure I wouldn't spill my food and ruin them. I then had to move the carton when Loki started trying to use the chopsticks and eat them, sliding it to the opposite end as Loki glared slightly playfully at me.  
  
"Don't argue with me over food," I warned him with a teasing smile as he was left just holding the chopsticks. I was half surprised he knew the correct way to hold them.  
  
"You shouldn't leave food and drink near the electricals, you know." Dr Selvig's voice from behind me made me turn and reminded me that I'd left my soda of the day beside a heated piece of equipment. I gently picked it up, feeling the warmth of the can and the drink before hiding a smirk and instead started pouting.  
  
"Aw. My drink is warm now. That's not nice." I had had this idea for a few days after reading from the Norse book. And Loki was here on perfect timing, and so put it to the side. It only took a few seconds of me pouting and sighing for Loki to reach across the table, pick up the can, and letting his hand slowly turn blue, spreading from his fingertips painlessly up Loki's hand as he held the can for a second, before letting his regular pale skin tone take back over and he put the can down. I looked at him, then at the can, and carefully reached over, careful not to touch exactly where he had, and felt the chill of the soda through the metal. I brought it to my lips, gently sipping and feeling the cold soda go down my throat. I turned to the half frost giant.  
  
"Cool. Literally. Thanks, Loki." I gave a smile.   
  
"Sir."  
  
"Thanks, Sir. No. I mean, Loki. No. Loki- Si- Lo- F- Fuck..." I trailed off when I realised I'd been tricked. Loki's lips curved up into a smirk. I scowled and crossed my arms, but still with humour. "Fine,  _Sir_. You get this round."  
  
"It's not a competition."  
  
"Well, if it were, I'd win."  
  
"How's that?" Loki asked, smirk still present. I picked up the cold can of soda and wiggled it a little. Loki saw his smile falter a little, before taking a breath in and out. "I have had to deal with an older brother my whole life. I am above a petty act of competition by now."  
  
"I very much doubt that." I smiled and put the can down before turning back to my work and food. Picking up the takeout box and weedling the chopsticks from Loki's grasp, I continued to eat my food and run my eyes over the plans for the rest of the machine. It would be running in a couple of days, tops. I briefly wondered why Loki picked up my pen but was nose deep in the papers to recognise what he was doing until the pen was placed directly in the centre of the plan I was looking at. I glanced over and saw him leaning over my notebook before standing, and I looked at the page that was open.  
  
What used to be:   
  
_`To be used:  
Daddy issues  
Tricky_  
_Lokimotion_  
_Low-key`_  
  
Was now:  
  
_`To be used:  
~~Daddy issues  
Tricky~~_  
_~~Lokimotion~~_ ~~~~  
_~~Low-key~~_  
𝒦𝒾𝓃𝑔  
𝒮𝒾𝓇  
𝒫𝓇𝒾𝓃𝒸𝑒 𝐿𝑜𝓀𝒾  
𝒜𝓈𝑔𝒶𝓇𝒹'𝓈/𝑀𝒾𝒹𝑔𝒶𝓇𝒹'𝓈 𝒮𝒶𝓋𝒾𝑜𝓊𝓇`  
  
I glanced up from the table to watch the smug son of a bitch walking away with his regular smirk on his face. But I didn't care. He was trying.  
  
  
**Later that night - 10:39pm**  
I was grateful that Loki had been bothered to gift me things for regular hygiene. Especially when it came to the fact he had given me a toothbrush and toothpaste. And not the annoying kind of toothpaste that stings five seconds after you start brushing, but the regular minty one that doesn't burn your mouth alive.  
  
Humming a tune while watching myself brush my teeth in the mirror post-shower was a normal occurrence for me. My home, or at least my dad's place, having a fairly large bathroom and expansive mirror en-suite of my bedroom. So, as I hummed the same song that had been stuck in my head for most of the week, I spat into the sink and wiped my mouth.  
  
_"Feels so good being bad_  
There's no way I'm turning back  
Now the pain is for pleasure  
'Cause nothing can measure." I gently sang to myself as I finished up in the bathroom, putting my toothbrush down and giving my hair a quick run through with the hairbrush left for me.

 _"Love is great, love is fine_  
Out the box, out of line  
The affliction of the feeling leaves me wanting more."  
  
I turned off the bathroom light and walked into my room, still singing.

 _"'Cause I may be bad but I'm perfectly good at it  
Sex in the air, I don't care, I love the smell of it  
Sticks and stones may break my bones  
But chains and whips excite me..."_  
  
I was dancing across my room like I was in a music video and not like I was kidnapped by a would-be King and singing about sex in my pyjamas. These were just normal activities I would do on my own on a regular basis anyway so, you know, who cares? It's not like they could actually hear or complain about me seeing as though my room was the length of a long hallway away from any other agent or worker.  
  
_"'Cause I may be bad but I'm perfectly good at it  
Sex in the air, I don't care, I love the smell of it  
Sticks and stones may break my bones  
But chains and whips excite me..."_  
  
"Come on, Mischief, join in." I noticed the cat halfway through my second rendition of the chorus, having pushed the door open with his head, or possibly unlocked it with magic. But when I noticed him, Loki just stood on the carpet, looking to have paused halfway towards the bed, and was now staring at me. I shrugged it off and continued with my average singing voice, not even attempting to reach the high notes that I knew I'd never hit in a lifetime.  
  
_"Na,_ _na_ _,_ _na_ _, come on, come on, come on  
I like it, like it, come on, come on, come on  
I like it, like it..."_  
  
Did he realise I was singing a sex song? Probably not. God of Mischief, not of Fertility. Didn't want to think about it, because if I started thinking about it, I'd start thinking about all the kinky fuckery Asgardians must get up to and- oh god, I'm thinking about it.  
  
_"S, S, S and M, M, M  
S, S, S and M, M, M  
S, S, S and M, M, M  
S, S, S and M, M, M."_  
  
I sang out the ending with a laugh in an attempt to stop my previous train of thought, and it worked, mostly, as I flopped back onto my bed, narrowly missing hitting my head on the wall. I was aware my singing voice wasn't showstopping in any way shape or form, but I wasn't tone deaf either. And yet I was still surprised that Loki had stayed instead of meowling at me and walking away from my explicit tones and lyrics. Hey, I was twenty-two, I could do what I wanted. Even when kidnapped by a psycho.  
  
Loki nuzzled my hand, having jumped on the bed to curl up by my side. I stroked him as I thought.  
  
A cute one at that, maybe. More so in cat form than human form, although I had no doubts he was attractive as his regular form too. I could admit he had handsome features as well as a charming personality, and a brooding, mysterious nature some female and males could find endearing, but for me, it wasn't a leg-wobbling hotness that could cause me to fall for him regardless of past or present actions. Plus the fact he was threatening to kill a lot of people if I didn't do what he said to help him to take over my planet was kind of a red flag in that area.  
  
Loki rolled onto his back and I continued to pet him.  
  
But I didn't hate him. He could act like an ass but he could also be nice too. That much I knew. Even if it seemed like he didn't.  
  
I continued to stroke the cat's fur as I slid into bed, feeling myself quickly grow sleepy. But just before I fell asleep, I felt Loki's feline body move from under my hand and the door to the room click shut.  
  
  
**The next day - 8:28am - Day 14**  
Walking out of my room, half asleep, and towards the lab that morning I'd been fairly relaxed. I hadn't had any Tesseract induced nightmares or anything and was checking through my phone when I stopped at the sound of a splash below me. I looked down and wondered what the puddle was, before screaming at the sight of the slashed open throat and wide-eyed face staring back up at me.  
  
For someone supposed to be the God of Lies, he often told the truth.   
  
_"I warned you what would happen if you were late."_  
  
The voice I had come to be so comfortable with over the last few weeks was now chilly and anger-inducing. I didn't look up from the worker's body before me, however. I had seen death before, hard not to in my profession, but my mind drew a blank at the suddenness of it all, but the main point that came out of me staring at this NASA agent's body was hate. I was glad I didn't recognise him, I didn't want to know if he had a family he would now never return to, how much of a life he had that was now cut short because I overslept. By twenty-eight minutes.  _Twenty-eight._ The guy didn't even look that old.  
  
I finally moved my eyes up to Loki, standing with a bloodied dagger in his right hand, and staff in the other. I balled my fist, trying to think of something to stay, and ended up yelling out the first thing my brain could come up with.  
  
"You psychopath!" I yelled, and in the already mostly silent lab, it was much clearer and no mistaking what I had yelled at the God. But at that time, I couldn't bring myself to care who the fuck he was.  
  
"People must have a sense of continuity in order to feel safe in these difficult times. I gave you a warning and you did not heed to it."  
  
"Bullshit I  _'did not heed to it'._ " I crossed my arms, jaw tensing. "I've made sure that I got up every day for the last fourteen days to work on this doomsday portal maker so you wouldn't kill one of these guys. And even after the fact that I continued to work on that stupid Tesseract machine, you couldn't let it by just this  _once_ that I overslept?"  
  
"You've clearly become too comfortable, and I've become too passive and tolerant of your behaviour. I am not here to take care of your needs, you are here to work for me. I could have had Barton kill you that night in the lab, but I didn't. I allowed you your life." Loki's eyes were surrounded by red, and he had small cuts on his face, along with something that looked like a newly forming bruise. "You have since become a clear distraction from my objective and it has gone on long enough." He took a step forward to me. I stood in that puddle of blood at my feet.  
  
"Are you gonna kill me for real this time, then? You're not the first to try and won't be the last." I held my arms out to the sides. "You couldn't even control my mind properly. You will never control my mind, my tongue, or myself. The same goes for a hell of a lot more people, too. Face up to that, would-be King." I looked him up and down, patronisingly.  
  
"You are one pathetic mortal out of multiple millions. Merely a sheep following her shepherd. You're in an illusion of control." Loki's tone was getting more and more agitated, his hand readjusting around the sceptre handle. "You will either follow or fall before me."  
  
"The only thing that will follow you will be death and destruction." I sent back. "You will bring an outright war on humanity. And for what? A chance at the sick vision of power that you're after? The idea that you could ever be a King?"   
  
"I  _am_ a King!"  
  
"Not here!" We were inches apart. "Here you are nothing more than a child with a few extra-terrestrial daddy issues, isn't that right  _Laufeyson?"_  
  
_"_ **Silence**!"  
  
At first, I didn't register what had happened when I was suddenly facing the east wall. Then the burning sensation in my cheek caught up to me, then the sound bounced off the walls. My hand went to touch my cheek, and I hissed as I felt my skin. I pulled my hand back, to see blood on my fingers, and tasted the familiar metallic tang on my tongue. I blinked and looked back at Loki, who was staring wide-eyed at me, his hand still in the air from his swing.  
  
"I-" Loki started, voice scarily soft and shocked as his eyes were unblinking. "I am-"  
  
My hand burned as I supposed his own cheek would when I struck him back. I didn't care if it wouldn't hurt him even half as bad as it did myself, I just needed to do it. Loki seemed just as shocked as I was, head turning back to me with those same wide eyes as he had held when he slapped me: as if all the anger and hate had drained out of him, only to leave behind sadness, and what I could only think of as pain.  
  
I took a step back. Then another. And another. Until I was walking backwards with one sticky shoe, and finally turned myself around to run back to my room. I heard him call his name for me, but I didn't give enough shits about him to turn back, instead, running into my room, slamming the door and locking it. I even went so far as to put a chair from the desk in the corner up against it.  
  
I moved back from the door, nursing my hurt hand as I sat on the edge of the bed, trying to comprehend everything that had just happened. I pulled my bed covers around myself, lying down with a sick feeling in my stomach as I felt my emotions take over me, and just stayed there like the frightened little girl I hadn't seen in the mirror in over ten years.


	11. Shimmer

**Later that day -** **05:34pm**  
I didn't go back into the lab for the rest of the day. The only time I had even left my room was to go get my notebook off the table, noticing that the regular delivery of food for breakfast and lunch had both been left outside my door when I almost stepped in it. I took it into my room, putting on the dresser before going out wrapped in the bed blanket to retrieve my notebook.  
  
The body was now gone and the floor mopped up of all signs there was ever an incident, except for one sole bloody footprint close to my room left by my own shoes. Everyone else was continuing on as if nothing had happened. I felt almost sick at that notion. But still, I made it to my desk and grabbed my book and pen, along with the book Loki had found for me as a last thought, and returned to my room without looking around to see if Barton or Loki were lurking in any dark corners or corridors. I did not want to deal with that shit today, so I wasn't going to.  
  
Back in my room, I curled up on the bed with the book, almost expecting the cat version of Loki to come in and expect to be pet. But he didn't. He left me alone as I had wanted. I had to give it to him, he knew when to leave something alone. Or maybe he was concerned I would break his nose this time if I saw his face again today. Maybe I would, but I imagined the slap got my point across well enough. Or at least that's what his expression had told me. But one thing that didn't sit right with me was how... vulnerable he had looked, even for a split second, when I raised my hand back at him. That expression was burned into my memory, and I didn't like it.  
  
  
 **The next day - Day 15**  
I was back in the lab and working on the machine, against my better judgement. I decided if I stayed in my room, it may just prevent the God to come and find me, so I was instead working -albeit much slower than normal- on the machine again. No sign of him still, and for that, I was both glad and not. Again, no idea why I felt like that was a bit of a disappointment but I brushed it off and moved on.  
  
Sticking more to studying the designs than carrying them out, I was wrapped in my lab coat and a jumper I had found in one of the drawers, meant for colder conditions. I just enjoyed the feeling, it was like a hug. I played with the chain of my necklace in my left hand as I worked on the plans with a pen in my right. Everything should have been in working order, but a life of working in labs and accidental explosions drilled the experience lesson into me that it was better to double check than chance it.   
  
The tray of empty food moving on the table made me snap out of my trance and look to see Barton doing the clear up. I went straight back to the plans without a second thought. There was something...  _missing_ on the plans? Something was weird about the paper designs, a gap I couldn't see and needed to figure out. What the hell was it?  
  
"He is trying, you know."  
  
"Not now, Barton." I moved the page away and picked up the next one, trying to figure out what it was that was wrong. This could literally prove a life or death situation. "I'm really not in the mood."  
  
"You do have have a right to be angry, but--"  
  
"Dude, I swear..."  
  
"Sir didn't enjoy making you upset."  
  
"Shut uuuup."  
  
"I'm trying to talk to you as a friend. We are friends, aren't we?" Barton asked suddenly and I glanced at him, furrowing my brow. Were we still? Even with the Tesseract's interference? It posed the question of how much of his normal mental state was still there behind the glazed eyes. I moved my eyes back down to the page in hand, dropping my necklace back inside my shirt.  
  
"You know, I finally thought maybe I was getting somewhere with him, and then he goes and ruins it." I turned to Barton, resting my cheek on my fist. "I don't want to pretend like I'm okay with all this. Like, this guy came out of a portal. Stuff like that only ever happens in books and movies." I put the pen down. "And he is so hard to get a read on. Like, one day he's getting me my favourite takeout food for lunch, and then yesterday he kills a guy because I overslept.  _Overslept_."  
  
"Sir serves a master. That master does not take kindly to distractions. You were the distraction for him and so you made him."  
  
"Oh piss off." I picked the pen back up. "I bet it's not even you talking and that asshole is just using your body to talk to me. Coward."  
  
"Not much distracts Sir." He ignored my statement. "He didn't understand why he let you become such an obstruction. He hadn't realised the way you affected him until then, and he didn't want to kill that worker in the first place, but the idea of upsetting his own master forced his hand."  
  
"Either leave me alone or I will force  _my_ hand to hammer your balls to the machine." I had had enough of the excuse making, scribbling down notes with a hard pressure on the pen, so much I nearly tore through the page. I tried to calm myself, determined to stop getting upset about it and just move on. Hawk stayed quiet for a few moments before picking up the trash on the edge of the desk.  
  
"He's not left his room since you went back to your own." Barton's last comment was before moving away to throw the meal remains in the trash. I sighed through my nose, trying to focus back on my work.  
  
  
 **10:23pm**  
After a shower and a fresh change of clothes including a thick jumper, I slid into bed and continued reading the book Loki had recommended to me. It was actually a pretty interesting read. I was at least halfway through by now, using a scrap from my notebook as a page marker. After about an hour of reading, I put the book down and began settling in for bed when the door opened. I didn't see the shadow of a human, but instead, the fuzzball. I didn't care enough to make a complaint when he slowly approached my bed and jumped up to sniff around my face before lying down beside me. I watched him as he stretched out in the weird way cats do, sticking their asses in the air, before lying down closing his eyes, letting his tail settle down on the bed in a curl. I rolled over and curled up with the cat, feeling the gentle warmth radiating off his feline figure as he relaxed into me.  
  
"This doesn't mean I forgive you, you know," I say as I close my eyes. I feel the cat tense against me. I smiled. Loki knew he'd been caught. But I suppose since I didn't shove him off the bed, he slowly relaxed back down into his lying down state, and I fell asleep with him beside me.  
  
  
 **03:45am - Day 16**  
 _Thunder boomed, lightning flashed, blue energy shot up towards the sky in a beam, cracking a literal hole in the sky open, bringing through an army of flying aliens that descended on the city. I had seen this dream before. The distant screams and explosions around me were familiar, flaring up as energy blasts hit the city streets outside of the Stark Tower. The same six colours flashed before my eyes: blue, yellow, red, purple, green, orange._

 _"Alex!" A familiar voice. My father's voice, called out from the scene, my vision returning to the city streets. I was suddenly no longer on them, but standing on something that was guiding me through the air. There was an alien screaming in my face. I kicked it and tossed it off the side of this thing. "Alex!" His voice again. I couldn't track the location. It didn't matter as a ship knocked me off what I was standing on, and suddenly I was in freefall.  
  
The sky above me was an open field, the world around me was a mix of chaos and madness, and the floor below me grew quickly closer. I was going to die.  
"Songbird!" A different voice this time. Someone I couldn't see.  
  
I hit something._  
  
I shot up from the bed, blinking and breathing hard as my body ripped itself from its sleeping state once again. I panted, sat up with my head in my hands as I tried to calm myself down. I wasn't falling. I was in bed. I was sitting on something solid. I felt sticky, covered in a cold sweat that was never a nice feeling, and that familiar feeling of uneasiness in my stomach. Fucking Tesseract.   
  
"Intern?"  
  
I nearly screamed at the sudden voice. I snapped my head in the direction of the voice, to see Loki standing in full dress and looking at me with concern. I swallowed, looking him up and down with a pant.  
  
"Are you alright?" He took a step towards me. I shuffled along the bed, away from him and towards the wall with the sheet gripped in my hands. He stopped instantly. "It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you." He held his hands up for me to see. That didn't exactly help calm me much considering the tricks I'd seen him pull recently. He seemed to understand that without me saying it and sighed, backing away into the corner with the solitary chair and sat down. I relaxed a little at the increased distance. The silence that then fell between us, save for my louder breathing, was uncomfortable and weird.  
  
"Hope you weren't watching me sleep." I half-joked, trying to lighten the mood somewhat. His expression said he didn't appreciate the effort.  
  
"I woke when you started thrashing," Loki answered, his voice sounding softened. Or maybe that was just him being tired. Hard to tell with my shaken brain. "What was your nightmare about?" Though my head wasn't failing to comprehend words. I thought back on the slowly fading nightmare.  
  
"Same thing as last time." I sat up straight, unclamping my hands from around the cover and letting them sit in my lap. "You bringing down destruction on the planet." I played with the end of the sheet, not looking up at him. He stayed silent for a moment.  
  
"Anything else?"   
  
"Those Chitauri are some weird looking fuckers." I shook my head. Loki gave a soft huff, almost agreeing. "I saw one screaming right in my face the other night."  
  
"A terrifying sight, I'm sure."  
  
"Don't patronise me,  _Mischief_." I crossed my arms but lost my scowl to a tired grin soon enough. Loki appeared to smile. Somehow. A little. I was sure I saw his mouth at least twitch upwards. His stark eyes ran over the carpeted floor, then up to the bed.  
  
"I guess my secret is out."  
  
"It was out over a week ago." I picked at the mattress cover with little cat hairs left behind. Loki paused.  
  
"So you were..."  
  
"Just playing along. Yep." I smiled at him. The God sat back in the chair, looking at me with slightly squinted eyes.  
  
"I don't know whether to be annoyed or impressed by this fact."  
  
"Both. Both would be normal for me." I nodded with a half smile. Silence fell between us again, but it was different from before. Not awkward, just quiet. It was then I began to realise how strange this situation was and decided that I should probably do something about it. "And if you don't mind, I want to go back to sleep, so if you could just..." I gestured with both hands in a sweeping motion to the door.  
  
"You're still experiencing anxiety," Loki spoke matter-of-factly.  
  
"I'm fine. I just need a shower and to... shake this off a little." I rubbed my arms and crossed them over my chest. I shook my head again. "Its normal after a nightmare. I get that from my father."  
  
"Do you take medication?"  
  
"It's not that serious." I swung my legs over the side of the bed. "But asking me constant questions about it isn't making me feel better. Can we change the subject?"  
  
"Do I cause you anxiety?" His question made me go silent in thought.  
  
"Kinda. Right now, you sort of are." I ran my hands over my face. "Otherwise no. Its gonna take more than one body to scare me like that," I said and realised that was probably just going to make the conversation more awkward. I was correct if Loki turning to inspect the arm of his armour was anything to go by.  
  
"I think you're right. We should change the subject."  
  
"Or you could just get out of my room?" I offered. Loki didn't seem to change his gaze from his armour arm. I rolled my eyes and threw up my hands. "Whatever." I dropped back down onto the bed on my back, bouncing a little on the mattress. It was no doubt a strange feeling to have Loki in here, even stranger in human-ish form than cat form. He wasn't exactly watching me but he didn't show any signs of leaving. And I sure as hell wasn't going to shower with him sitting there in the next room. And I needed to shake this after-feeling from the Tesseract being a dick to my sleeping cycle.  
  
A green shimmer lighting up the otherwise dark room caught my attention. I was staring at the ceiling when the flash came from my left. I squinted at the ceiling and another flash of light exploded without a sound. I turned my head to see Loki, arm stretched out, palm facing up, and letting little emerald wisps of light flow out from his hand before gently disappearing into nothing. I blinked, watching as the small lines of light twisted and curled together inches above Loki's palm, delicately dancing in the otherwise dim bathroom light coming through the door I left open a crack.  
  
Loki was focussing on his hand, blue eyes darker in concentration with little green sparkles reflected whenever the magic lighting caught his eyes. It was almost hypnotic.  
  
The green swirls stretched farther out of his palm, bending and curling around the room in a mist that lit up the outlines of what the bathroom light didn't reach. My eyes practically glazed over at the sight - the view making me feel relaxed, and also sleepy. I watched the magic streams spin and swirl around like the Northern lights I used to beg my mother to take me to see. My eyes felt heavy.   
  
I couldn't help it. I fell asleep.


	12. Windows

**The next day -** **02:39pm**  
"Aaaagh. Fuck me! Fuck me! _Fuck! Me!"_ I yell out loud in the lab, my voice and the clattering of metal against concrete echoing around the walls but gaining no attention from other workers.  
  
"Is this the way all humans demand sexual intercourse?" Loki's opening statement as he approached my desk came out. I might have laughed had I not just done what I had done.  
  
"I'm not demanding sex." I gritted out to him. "A blowtorch burns at 2000 degrees." I kick the offending object on the floor with my shoe after unplugging it with my good hand. "It doesn't hurt at first - it's too hot for the mind to comprehend. The flame sears the nerve endings shut, killing them. I'm currently going into shock and feeling cold and numb. When I start smelling my own burning flesh it will start hurting." I held my left hand in my right, cursing at myself for somehow catching my skin when welding the machine with gloves on. "And so I am just preparing for the pain." I grit my teeth, knowing this routine well.  
  
"Has this happened before to you?" Loki asked, glancing between the blowtorch and myself. I used my good hand to pull up my lab coat sleeve to show a mark on my upper arm just above my elbow.  
  
"There and..." I lifted my shirt to reveal my waist, a mark on the front side of my right hipbone. "There." The burn was completely healed but if you looked closely enough you could see the slight difference in the skin where it had healed over. "Burn scars don't heal well if they aren't treated properly." I set my jaw as I felt the burning begin to creep in on my hand. "Ow. Okay, That's starting to hurt. Ow. Ow." I winced and squeezed my eyes shut. "I'll be about an hour since I can't go to the hospital." I began speed walking towards my room, heading into the bathroom and running lukewarm water before putting my hand under the stream.  
  
 _Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuuuuuuck. That burns._  
  
"Stop." Loki's voice caused me to yell. Not from pain but the suddenness of him appearing behind me in the bathroom. I hadn't even heard or seen him come in.  
  
"Stop doing that, you asshole." I tried not to hiss at the pain slowly building on my hand as the water ran over it.   
  
"Give me your hand." I was already holding out my wrist before I could think. I curse the day he discovered his silver tongue. I took deep breaths as my hand began seizing. The god took a gentle hold of my wrists as soon as I was close enough. I flinched and tried to pull my hand back but his grip was undeniably strong. My eyes burned along with the pain now my hand was out of the water.  
  
Loki glanced at my face before looking at the scalding burn mark. He lifted his other hand and put it over the mark, making me muffle a scream behind my left hand. His eyes flicked between me and the injury again before a green glow emanated from under his palm. I bit my finger as he continued to study the mark that was now covered by his hand, and I noticed the burning was growing considerably less painful with every second.   
  
Loki breathed out a short breath, moving his hand from on top of the injury to reveal... nothing.  _The fuck?_ The burn was no longer there, and instead now the clear patch of skin that had been there seconds before I was a careless idiot. My eyes flicked to Loki.  
  
"There." He still held my wrist in his grip, a lot more gentle now, almost delicate. "Is that better?" The gravel of his voice had disappeared again, leaving silk tones behind.  
  
"Yeah. Much." He released his grip and I ran my fingers over the skin, feeling no pain and just the touch of my own hand. "Thank you." I smiled gently and saw a smile on his own face for half a second before it disappeared. "You are allowed to enjoy yourself from time to time, you know. No one's gonna judge you," I mumbled, moving out of the bathroom and into my bedroom.   
  
"Where are you with the machine?" Loki ignored my last statement as I had expected. I brushed it off.  
  
"Well, I figured out what's wrong with it." I rolled down the sleeves of my lab coat. "We're missing the required amount of Iridium to stabilise the core. If we don't stabilise the core, the whole thing could explode and kill everything within a ten-mile radius of the machine. It also means the portal won’t collapse on itself as it did at SHIELD, and you can open the portal as wide for as long as you want. "  
  
"Where can we find more?" Loki followed me as I walked around the room, fixing things up for next to no reason. I didn't miss the mention of 'we' rather than 'you'.  
  
"I don't know. I'm not the material lackey." I shrugged. "Ask Barton. He'll know." I made the bed, brushing cat hairs off his surface of the cover. "Though he might have to go out of the building to track it. Unless you enchant his phone, maps are going to do jack this far under the surface."  
  
"You still believe we are underground."  
  
"Are we not?" I raised an eyebrow, turning round to look at him. He smiled, and I felt a little unnerved by that. He took a few steps back, then walked over to the wall adjacent to my bed, waving his hand in the air. In a shimmer of emerald and gold, a square shape formed, then filled itself in before revealing sunlight that quickly streamed into the room and onto the floor. I blinked, walking towards it and looking out to see an expanse of large, open fields and in the very distance, the outlines of a few tall buildings. I recognised the layout. We were just outside New York. And the tallest building I could see from here peeking its head out over the grassy expanse was marked with a gigantic 'STARK' marking the tower. I huffed. Of course, I'd be able to see that from here. "Oh," I said, reaching out to touch the window. If it was an illusion, it certainly felt much more realistic than expected. I glanced over my shoulder. "You know, you're using your magic a lot more, recently."  
  
"You're no longer afraid of it." Was the God's answer.  
  
"I wasn't really afraid of it to begin with unless you were materialising daggers and threatening to cut out my tongue." I crossed my arms. "And why would it matter if I was afraid of it, anyway? I thought you didn't care."  
  
"I don't," Loki said. I gave him a look. "Alright. I  _didn't_. But as you said, the Midgardians will not respect and be obedient to me if they are constantly afraid of me."  
  
"Says the being who killed a worker and scared the living shit out of me because I overslept three days ago."  
  
"Are you not going to move past that?"  
  
"Not anytime soon." I shook my head. Loki breathed in and his eyes went to the far wall as if something else caught his attention. He looked back to me.  
  
"I'll ask Barton about the Iridium. Continue your work on the machine." He nodded to the door. I waited patiently. It didn't take him long to figure it out. "Please, Intern."  
  
"What is it with you and avoiding my name?"  
  
"Now, preferably." Loki smiled tightly at me. I rolled my eyes and walked out of the room, back to the lab.  
  
  
 **Later that day - 10:34pm - Loki's POV (insert dramatic music here)**  
Walking the cold halls gave me pause. The enjoyment for the colder temperatures had always been in my blood, it seemed. And the quietness away from the working Midgardians was a welcome change of scenery, other than being in my room, of course.  
  
Barton had found an Iridium depository in Germany. I would take him and the Intern with me, and so decided a fair warning was appropriate for the girl should she start another argument with me.  
  
Approaching the door, I realised it had been left open, and that instead of the natural silence I had expected, or the distant sound of the shower running, I heard another sound. A voice. Not talking, but a gentle singsong. I stood a pace outside the door, pausing and listening to the voice I knew to be the girl's, but instead of her usual rock-type singing, she was instead taking on a more soft and tender tone. It wasn't perfectly professional like I had heard the females in the dining halls on Asgard for entertainment, but it wasn't like my brother's feigned victory cheers either. I leant by the doorframe, only seeing a slither of the room, but enough to see her shadow in the moonlight on the floor coming from the window.  
  
 _"And I hope that you are having the time of your life  
But think twice, that's my only advice"_  
  
I did not recognise the song, but its lyrics weren't unpleasant to listen to.  
  
 _"Come on now  
Who do you, who do you, who do you, who do you think you are?  
Ha ha ha bless your soul  
You really think that you're in control?"_  
  
 _Well, I think you're crazy  
I think you're crazy  
I think you're crazy  
Just like me"_  
  
The sound was almost hypnotic, almost. I wondered how she looked when she sang. I was now used to being looked at in her regular sarcastic manner, or otherwise surprised expression. Now I had also seen her angry. But I wondered if she appeared as soft as she sang, or if her small freckles were more or less visible in the low light of the window.  
  
 _"My heroes had the heart to lose their lives out on a limb  
And all I remember is thinking, I want to be like them  
Ever since I was little, ever since I was little it looked like fun  
And it's no coincidence I've come  
And I can die when I'm done  
  
Maybe I'm crazy  
Maybe you're crazy  
Maybe we're crazy  
Probably  
Just like me..."_  
  
Her voice stopped there. And I was suddenly aware of my leaning against the wall, close to knocking the door open further and alerting her to my presence. I took a step back, taking a breath and stabilising myself, shaking my head to shake away the hypnotic feeling that was around me.  
  
I didn't feel like staying any longer. I could tell her tomorrow. I might as well let her rest for the night in preparation for tomorrow evening's plans.  
  
I turned, walking back down the hall and away from the Intern's room, back towards the lab and to my own room to rest. The Chitauri were coming, and they didn't allow me much room to move without their consent. I did wish they weren't so right about the 'distraction' I was currently making myself a fool for.  
  
  
 **Alex's POV - Same time**  
 _"Just like me..."_  
  
It might have been me wanting to be dramatic as I finished, looking out of the window to the city and singing like I was in a music video, but I didn't care. I was enjoying myself. And hearing the footsteps walking away from my door once my song was finished did little to curb my smile.


	13. Colour scheme

**Day 18 - Alex's POV - 12:18pm**  
The lab was busier than usual. More NASA agents had come and gone in the last few hours than the last few days, carrying new plans that I didn't recognise and following Barton's orders mindlessly. It had been like that for most of the morning, and for a time, I was worried I wouldn't get my lunch. That was until Loki brought me a margarita from my favourite pizza restaurant. He even got it so they'd cut it beforehand.  
  
"How's the building coming along?" He decided to stick around rather than going to skulk off somewhere else today.  
  
"Well, I've drawn up the new designs for the machine core. If my math is right, which it normally is, the iridium should stabilise everything effectively." I told him, holding a pizza slice and angling it into my mouth so gravity didn't do its thing with the sauce over the blueprints.  
  
"Are you confident it will be ready soon?"  
  
"Absolutely." I nodded, swallowing a bite. "Of course, it would help to know what you were choosing not to tell me about your current plans to get this iridium." I tilted my head to him. He smiled. That wasn't supposed to be a statement to smile at. "What?"  
  
"Now is probably the best time to tell you, I suppose." Loki chuckled softly, glancing at the floor then back to me. "In order to find the amount of iridium that you require, Barton is going to have to go to Königstraße," Loki explained in his soft voice, the way I had come to learn was the voice he used when leading up to something. I recognised the place he named. Königstraße was in Germany. Right? "And you, Songbird, are going to help me help him."  
  
"'Songbird'?" I raised an eyebrow, grin slowly spreading onto my face. "Someone's been creeping on meeee." I teased gently.  
  
"Would you prefer I called you ' _Intern_ '?" Loki asked shortly. I didn't respond. He had a point. "The party is this evening from 8:30pm to 11:00pm. You shall accompany me as my partnered guest."  
  
"Why me? Why not take Barton as your partnered guest instead? You have other people to take the iridium." I shrugged, eating the rest of the slice of pizza as Loki looked at me like he already had an argument ready. I jumped in first. "If you're worried about people looking at you weird, I very much doubt they will. Just do that thing with your frowny face and they'll soon stop."  
  
"Barton will be preoccupied with gathering the iridium." He sighed, tightly. "You  _will_ be accompanying me tonight. I shall be wearing a suit. And you, Songbird, shall be wearing a gown." He nodded tightly before turning and walking away from me and towards Barton still stood in the corner making orders. He left me standing there, tomato sauce on my fingers and staring after the psychopathic god, thinking only one question.  
  
"What the fuck is a gown?"  
  
 **One hour later...**  
Loki definitely had a preferred colour scheme. His normal clothes, his suit, hell, even his magic was green and gold. So I don't know why it surprised me when I was presented with an emerald green dress to wear for the evening.  
  
"Ah. That's a gown."  
  
"Were you really unfamiliar with this concept?"  
  
"It's usually called a dress, where I'm from. A gown makes it sound like something I would wear to bed." I glanced between him and the pretty expensive looking dress. And I know expensive. "Looking at this, however, it wouldn't be a good idea to do that with."   
  
"Does that mean you like it or not?" He asked, almost in a rush.  
  
"It's pretty. Too pretty, for me, I think." I stopped that insecure talk as soon as it started. I did not want to go down that rabbit hole. "I still don't want to go," I said instead, crossing my arms to him. "I hate things like this. I hate the music, I hate the clothes, I hate the people, I hate the atmosphere, I hate the slow dancing. Jeez, do I  _hate_ the slow dancing." I pressed my palms to my eyes.   
  
"Well, it's lucky you do not have a say in this, isn't it?" He returned, voice sounding impatient. "What is that phrase mortals use?" I looked at him, hearing his voice growing steadily more irritated. "Ah, yes.  _'Cry me a river',_  Songbird." Loki smiled harshly, pushing the dress into my arms. I blinked. "Get dressed. Be in the lab in an hour." He ordered, eyes flicking towards the bathroom in indication. I stared at him for a second, making mental comments about if my sass was rubbing off on the trickster, but just turned myself to the bathroom and locked the door behind me. Not that that would make much of a difference if he wanted to come in.  
  
  
 **One hour later (again)...**  
"This thing isn't an illusion, right?" I walked into the lab and towards the mischievous god, dress layers swaying as I moved. The God paused in his conversation with Barton, dressed in a smart suit and scarf, and glanced at me, I could have sworn he did a double take. "It's not going to disappear on me in the middle of a dance or something? You are the God of Mischief, after all. I wouldn't exactly put it past you." I crossed my arms, the material of the dress he'd given me holding snug against my curves. He didn't answer me, looking my figure up and down with scrutinising eyes and a half smile.  
  
 _Yeah, okay. I'm glad I chose to wear a vest and leggings under this thing. Just in case._  
  
"We're leaving now," Loki told me, picking up his spear off one of the lab desks and changing it into a walking staff instead. I didn't even bother to think about questioning it and instead thought about how matching we were.  
  
The dress was off-the-shoulder as I said, the lace at the top of the dress holding it to my body was a sparkling gold. The main bodice and chiffon skirt of the dress that barely scraped the floor were both emerald green, save for the gold lace strips that crisscrossed over my midsection and joined at the back. And when I spun, the glittering gold sequins that were heavy in number at the end of the skirt and grew more sparse towards the knee made the dress mimic the appearance of when Loki would cast an illusion, hence my earlier concern about the dress disappearing in the middle of a dance.  
  
Loki began walking down one of the many hallways, basically radiating confidence and strong character, as well as an attractive male body in the suit he wore. I followed him, glancing down at my own.  
  
Definitely not a supermodel body. My upper arms were a little big. And I've hated my thighs since my teen years. My broad shoulders made it so I was between sizes in shirts, and I had very little to no makeup on, having made do on an eyeliner and rose-tinted lip balm from my lab coat. Makeup was never something I obsessed over but I was guilty of sometimes carrying a few things with me. And it wasn't like I planned this in advance.  
  
Coming out of the hallway I was led outside of the building for the first time in eighteen days, following the God closely to a jet that was very obviously a SHIELD-issue Quinjet. Loki glanced back to check I hadn't made a run for it and made me walk first onto the plane just in case, and I sat on one of the side benches, being careful with how I sat with the dress, trying not to ruin the ruffles or make lines in the material. Loki sat across from me, and Barton beside me. I felt that was on purpose. But soon enough, one of the few select workers that had followed us was firing up the engines and lifting the landing gear before setting off for Germany, a usual ten-hour flight that would turn into five.  
  
  
 **Five hours later**  
Stepping off the plane in an abandoned side street was weird. The cloaking on the jet was on, of course, but I doubt we went unnoticed by locals as we stepped off. Loki had had a grasp on my wrist since we touched down, and Barton disappeared along with the other workers that had come with us and was now being guided towards a large, lit up building in the distance.  
  
The building was a large political mansion, guests outside and inside dressed in suits and dresses that would make this a good target for a robbery. But, oddly enough, once we reached the outside of the building, we didn't go up to the doors to be let inside. Instead, Loki took my hand instead of my wrist and started casually walking up and down the street. And I'm not going to lie, this might have actually been fun had he not been a total extraterrestrial psychopath who kidnapped me and was about to take over the earth with an alien army from outer space. But, oh well, kidnappees can't be choosers, can they?  
  
"What are we even doing here? The vault is like half a mile away. You haven't told me your plan like you expect me to just run off away from a  _God_ in the middle of a  _foreign country_." I told him, feeling the colder temperature of his hand against my own. The breeze of the late night was already slightly brisk without his hand cooling me further. "Whether you've gathered this or not yet, I'm not that stupid," I added on as he looked around the street, and I furrowed my brow, studying his face. He was looking for something - way too casual to be actually relaxed. I looked around, trying to figure out what he was looking for, as we then began to walk around to the back of the building.  
  
"It is not for you to worry about, Songbird."  
  
"' _Songbird_ '? Well, ze pretty name matches ze pretty face." The doorman we were approaching had apparently caught the conversation. Elder, clean-shaven and dressed in a German tailored suit to show off his wealth. I tried not to roll my eyes. The man, a few inches smaller than Loki, took my hand in, lifting it up and bowing his head. "I am Ernst, miss, your host for zis evening." The apparent host of the party did kiss my knuckles now.  
  
"Take your hand off of her this instant, unless you want to lose it." Loki's voice was chilling and sudden. The warmth of Ernst's hand instantly left mine and he stood straight, clearing his throat.  
  
"Apologies. I mean no disrespect to ze lady, or yourself" He said, lightly swallowing and opening the door for us both quickly. Loki nodded and hooked his arm underneath mine, guiding me inside. I sent Ernst and apologetic look as Loki led me into the upper floor fast.  
  
"What the hell was that?" I dropped my hand from his, which was difficult with how hard he was holding me, turning to him.  
  
"Quiet." He walked faster than before, eyes demanding I follow. I muttered under my breath about temperamental gods, chasing after him as he strode over to the marble balcony overlooking the party and paused. He stood stiff as if something was bothering him. I caught up to him and stopped by his side, looking at him looking straight ahead. I heard the breath more than saw it, hearing him breathe in deeply before letting it out, relaxing his stance and overlooking the party, leaning slightly on his staff.  
  
The music from up here was slightly muffled, but an obvious classical theme was apparent. Some couples were talking while others were twirling around to the slow metronomic beat that made me want to fall asleep just thinking about it. There were obvious groups of businessmen and friends in the corners helping themselves to champagne or other treats handed out by the waiters. But nothing really stood out to me, so when I saw that Loki was obviously looking for something in particular in the crowd, eyes scanning over them all, I was confused as to what he was looking for.  
  
Loki stood straight then, facing me and holding out his arm for me to take, rather than taking it himself. I watched him carefully, trying to figure out what had turned him from casual and relaxed to hateful and vengeful, then back again in a nanosecond. He stood still and waited patiently, studying me back, but I noticed the longer I waited, the softer that harsh look became, and those icy blue eyes melted into ocean blues. I sighed, shaking my head and giving up officially on trying to understand the man of mischief, twisting to him.  
  
"Whatever you do tonight, please don't ask me to dance," I mumbled as I took his offered arm, deciding to hell with it and to just give in. Loki smiled, but not in a way I could distinguish as good or bad before he started leading me towards the stairs and to the main hall.


	14. Dance with me

**SHIELD Helicarrier - Same day - 08:30pm German Time**  
"I mean if it’s not too much trouble."  
  
"No-no, it’s fine." Steve nodded, standing on the bridge with the excited agent beside him, just waiting.  
  
"It’s a vintage set. Took me a couple of years to collect them all. Near mint, slight foxing around the edges but--"  
  
"We got a hit." Agent Jasper Sitwell cut Coulson off. "Sixty-seven percent match. Wait- cross-match, seventy-nine percent." The screen filled with Loki's image taken from the lab CCTV comparing to a live feed.  
  
"Location?" Coulson walked over, watching the footage showing Loki walking around outside the political party building, almost too casually.  
  
"Stuttgart, Germany. Twenty-eight, Königstraße. He’s not exactly hiding." Jasper responded, and Fury glanced at his own screen.  
  
"Who's the girl with him?" Steve viewed the screen, confused at the sight of the brunette woman on his arm.  
  
"That's Agent Callaway." Fury said at the same time the face scan came up with her ID. Funnily enough, Steve realised, it was not a regular SHIELD ID. "She went missing from the lab along with Agent Barton the night Loki took the Tesseract. We assumed she'd either been killed or run." Steve glanced back at the Director. "Captain, you're up." Steve nodded and walked off to where his suit had been stored for him, and the Director looked back at his own screens with a concerned gaze. He was thankful for the fact that she was alive, having known her for the summer months he knew she was definitely one who could spin situations to her own needs. But the secret he, Barton, and herself had held together over the summer months was about to be undone.  
  
  
 **3rd Person POV - Stuttgart science gala**  
Soft white lights illuminated the ballroom where they hung on marble pillars, calmly pushing away the darkness from outside following the velvet carpet leading to the front door. The room was alive with the anyone that had been lucky enough to receive an invitation to the celebration of scientific discovery, an empty podium ready and waiting for a scientist to step up and make his speech. Flooding the room, distinguished guests and decorated elders made declarations and told stories to fellow guests mingling or dancing to the string orchestra if they were not otherwise sipping their sparkling champagne. It wasn't overly crowded, just a few select people that carried the air with sophistication, calm, and elegance.  
  
Beethoven's String Quartet No. 13, Alex recognised from the frequent habit of being on the internet at two in the morning, was being played by the orchestra to the left of the ballroom. Her grip on the champagne flute in hand was considerate of its glass material, sipping lightly as she glanced around the room and tried not to have a mild panic attack. She had been to galas before, hard to avoid them in her life, but if it wasn't for the Norse God standing beside her drinking from a similar glass, she might have enjoyed herself. She knew he was planning something, otherwise Barton would have been sent by himself, but instead, they were both there together in the middle of a ballroom looking like a couple who had fallen out in the car on the way here.  
  
There were scheduled speeches happening sometime during the gala was all Alex had heard from the guests around her, thankful for the little German she did know, managing to fill in the blanks for other words. But she didn't know what interest Loki would have in them or the scientists themselves and maybe got a little unnecessarily offended when the option of him needing those scientists to finish work that she started came through her mind.  
  
A waiter taking her empty glass from her hand brought her out of her thoughts. The young man smiled at her and she mirrored it, before catching a glimpse of Loki in her peripherals and looking at the God instead. He did look nice in his suit and scarf, she had to admit.  
  
Loki was barely paying attention to his accompanying date, at least Alex thought so. But he had been glancing at Alex every so often, and how she looked in the dress he had given her. It bothered him how much she could distract him, and when he looked at her being given a new glass by the young waiter and she smiled politely, he almost forgot the reason they were here in the first place. But he would prove The Other wrong. She was not going to stop him. He was not losing his focus or slowing down to tend to the needs of some weak Midgardian.  
  
So why then, had he felt so wrong when he struck her? When she finally looked at him with what he had wanted to see in her eyes since they first met in the lab: fear?  
  
The guards posted at the corners were eying him and Alex. At first, he assumed they were admiring her, but then he realised they didn't look like a part of the gathering. They seemed odd and excluded from the rest of the party. And they might be asked to leave or explain themselves should they arouse much more suspicion. So, Loki put down his champagne flute on a passing waiter's tray.  
  
 _"Dance with me."_  Alex was already being a little less than dragged towards the centre of the room before she could register the question or put down her glass.   
  
"No, no, no, no. I don't like dancing." Alex made a noise of disagreement as she was spun into an awkward embrace. She put her glass down on a statue bench.  
  
"They're staring."  
  
"I don't care," Alex replied, shaking her head, wary of the music being only so loud to cover their English. "And you could at least ask me to dance instead of grabbing and demanding. You're being really off." The girl rubbed her wrist where he'd grasped her.  
  
" _Will_ you dance with me?"   
  
"Apology first." Alex crossed her arms. The guards were starting to notice them again.   
  
"Don't push me, Songbird," Loki warned. Alex wasn't deterred by his glare. The God of Mischief stood straight, holding back a growl and gritting his teeth behind closed lips, sighing sharply through his nose.   
  
"I'm sorry for grabbing you." He did relax himself to say, not enjoying the irritated look on her face. It gave her small frown lines between her eyes, and her green eyes looked harsh when annoyed. It reminded him of the looks he received when asking women on Asgard to dance, who cared much more for his brother's hand, and how terrifying it had become out of fear of rejection. He bowed, extending a hand with all the grace and royal manners he could manage. "Would you like to dance with me, Songbird?" He asked again, his voice much softer and caring.  
  
"Okay." Alex allowed herself to take his hand, despite her thoughts on dancing and being so close to Loki. She could see he was trying, again. And if he was trying, she would give him that chance. The girl moved one hand to his shoulder, the other joining his slightly colder grasp as his other hand settled gently on her hip, as if afraid he'd break her. She didn't comment on it though, as they began slowly swaying together to the sound of the orchestra.  
  
  
Although it wasn't the exact context Alex thought she'd be in when dancing with someone, she couldn't complain too much. Loki wasn't going any faster or slower than the pace she had set, purposefully keeping in time with her rhythm, rather than taking the lead as she'd expected. She could tell his mind was on other things, though. The way his eyes flicked around the room at the guards and then the front door of the building told her that much. But the further into the song they danced, the less and less preoccupied Loki looked, and eventually, they had locked eyes as they moved in unison to the violin lead.  
  
She could feel his chilled breath gently dusting her face, his eyes seeming to stare right into her soul. She swallowed, suddenly missing her champagne flute in her hand or something else to focus on but the ice of his gaze, intentional or not. As the song faded out and changed to a much more romantic rhythm, where more couples swept onto the ballroom floor, the two decreased the distance between themselves, barely a few inches away now. She felt like she could hear his heartbeat from this close, soon leaning her head on his shoulder and listening to the thumping that she had half-expected to be unlike a human's.  
  
Loki could tell he was a few inches taller than Alex from how close they were standing, not enough she'd have to crane her head to meet his eyes. Her hand was also comparatively warmer than his. They were slowly moving closer together before Alex had started resting her head on his shoulder as the two danced. To him, she looked simply elegant when dancing, her dress flowing and glittering in the soft light of the ballroom, unlike other women he had noticed spinning around the hall with their various partners. She was unlike them, unlike other Midgardians. Perfectly complicated. And irritating. But complicated.  
  
"You look beautiful, Songbird," Loki whispered gently as they danced, remembering he had said nothing of her appearance since first meeting her or seeing her in the dress. He hadn't envisioned that she would look so fitting in it, but it highlighted her average female body and curves wonderfully. Alex had definitely not expected the compliment, so much was evident by her small pause in rhythm in her dance, but soon picked it back up again when she realised he was probably just making up for before by being nice.  
  
He twirled her, and the dress swirled and sparkled around her, appearing almost magical in its design. She moved back to rest against him, eyes fluttering closed as the music played on, relaxing into the hold of her captor.  
  
  
  
Until Alex's phone buzzed in Loki's pocket.


	15. Knien

Alex's phone buzzed in Loki's pocket.  
  
Loki didn't stop in his swaying to the music as he took it out. Alex glanced up at him as he read the onscreen message before releasing her hand from his. The music finished and applause from all around the hall followed, but Loki was not interested. Alex squinted at him, trying to look at the phone before Loki removed himself completely from her and walked away.  
  
He stalked through the crowd and up to the podium where a scientist was beginning to draw attention and make his speech. When a guard attempted to stop him, he hit them in a way that screamed _['not today, peasant'](http://i.imgur.com/fqUQAvm.gif)_ before taking the famous scientist by the throat and dragging him to a statue bench, flipping him onto it and knocking Alex's glass over to shatter against the floor. The guests and staff all stopped and stared at Loki as he revealed a device from his jacket, holding it over the scientist before it powered up and bored into his eye. Women and men alike scattered away in horror, screaming and running to the sound of the device motor and string instruments hitting the floor as Loki grinned at his own display.  
  
Alex turned, putting her hand over her mouth and trying to stop herself gagging as the man's screams echoed in her mind. Loki continued to burrow into the man's eye before tossing him off the bench and throwing the machine to the other side of the room, now useless.  
  
" _That_ was your plan?" Once she'd forced off any stomach bile from coming up and decorating the waxed floor, Alex turned to the God. "I could think of ten other things you could've done instead and nowhere near as gross. Like, I'm literally counting them in my head right now."  
  
"Outside." Loki was already walking away and out of the door to the building, people still fleeing the gala in front of him. Alex followed begrudgingly as Loki walked behind the screaming crowds, taking on his Asgardian attire instead of his suit, helmet included. Alex had never seen the helmet before, and all that came to mind when she saw it was 'that is the gayest looking thing I have ever seen'.  
  
Crossing the street to follow the crowd, his sceptre blasted an approaching Polizei car speeding toward him, flipping it over and making it crash into another car and set off both alarms. As the crowd ran away, guests with some added German pedestrians who had quickly been caught up in the commotion, they fled into the square, an apparition of the God appearing in front of them. _"Kneel before me."_ His command was met with the mob running to the east. Another vision of Loki appeared, making them stumble back and into the third glitching copy of the God before the real version caught up with them and made sure all four of himself herded the people into a large, cowering huddle.   
  
 "I said-" He pounded his sceptre against the ground, making each version of himself glow brightly along with it.  _"Kneel!"_ The man screamed at the quivering crowd before him and was mainly met with a few people moving to bend at the knees, while the rest were left standing and staring in confusion and fear of what the God wanted from them.  
  
"' _Knien_ '." Alex, who had been running with the crowd and not getting very far, whispered with a nod to the people. " _German_." She prompted him when he squinted at her. He turned back to the crowd.  
  
 _ **"Knieeen!"**_  All four apparitions yelled at their captives, and for a second Alex wished she'd translated a rude word instead. The people now understanding hurried to obey, dropping to their knees quickly despite the costs of their outfits. Loki directed his attention to Alex, still standing. She stood still for a few seconds before gently lowering herself to the floor, in a crouch instead of a kneel just to spite him and try to ruin as little of the dress she was wearing as possible.  _Yeah, fuck you, dude, after that stunt._  Loki ignored the implied sentence in the look given to him, instead, turning to walk through the huddled mob of people.   
  
"Is not this simpler? Is this not your natural state?" He was wearing a smile much less than friendly, walking through the gaps in the guests. Many dropped their heads in fast respect or fear of meeting his eyes. "It’s the unspoken truth of humanity, that you crave subjugation. The bright lure of freedom diminishes your life’s joy in a mad scramble for power, for identity. You were  _made_ to be ruled." Alex sighed and rolled her eyes, knowing he wouldn't hear her from where she was at the front.  _This shit again?_ Loki paused dead centre in the crowd, turning on the spot and grinning. "And in the end, you will always kneel."  
  
Silence or muffled whimpers was shared between the crowd kneeling to Loki's feet, a great sense of power overcoming him from people finally listening to his madness. No one dared even move an inch in fear of being reprimanded or worse.  
  
But through all the silence and fear while Loki admired the respect to him, no matter how forced it was, a single old German man from the back of the crowd rose slowly his feet to face the God.  
  
"Not to men like you." The man said, showing no fear in his eyes as he faced the extraterrestrial.  
  
"There are no men like me." Loki grinned back at him.  
  
"There are always men like you." The man responded, voice echoing in the silence.  
  
 _Please don't die, please don't die, please don't die_ Alex worried in her mind.  
  
"Look to your elder, people," Loki spoke to the crowd, directing their attention with his command. "Let him be an example." Loki's sceptre powered up and fired, just in time for a figure in red white and blue to jump in front of him, deflecting the beam off his shield and sending it back to hit Loki, who fell to the ground. Alex quickly recognised the man from skipping through some private SHIELD files on her lunch break.  
  
"You know, the last time I was in Germany and saw a man standing above everybody else, we ended up disagreeing." Captain America, or otherwise known as Steven Rogers, stepped through the crowd and towards the God, prompting others around him to stop kneeling and start standing.  
  
"The soldier." Loki rose to his feet with a snicker. "The man out of time."  
  
"I’m not the one who’s out of time."  
  
The roaring engine of the quinjet flying in from behind Cap was heard before it was seen. Black Widow and her copilot unfolded the guns from the underside of the plane and aimed at the God.  
 _"Loki, drop the weapon and stand down."_ The female voice echoed over the PA system and across the square. Loki fired at the jet, the jet banked hard to the right to avoid it and Cap tossed his shield at Loki's chest plate, the two beginning their fight.   
  
The crowd ran in all directions to avoid the fire and backlash of the two superhumans. Alex knew she couldn't exactly run very far in a foreign country with no ID or any other way to get home and so ducked behind the cover of a display garden wall and watched the fight, hoping maybe she could bagsy a ride with Natasha if they possibly made it out alive.  
  
 Loki knocked Cap’s shield to the side, scattering across the floor, and forced his head down with the end of his sceptre.  
"Kneel." Came the demand.  
  
"Not today." Cap jumped up and did a spin-kick to Loki’s face.  
  
Natasha, donned in her regular Black Widow suit, steered the jet back into position, trying to figure out how to take a shot without hurting the people around or the Captain in the process.  
"Guy’s all over the place." She kept her hands steady and the jet lined up, watching Loki toss Steve across the floor. The sounds in her headphones changed.  
  
 _"Agent Romanoff, you miss me?"_  Natasha recognised the cocky billionaire's voice coming over her earpiece, and quickly followed by the jet's computer screen displaying the message _’PA SYSTEMS OVERRIDE’_. She forced herself to hide a smile.  
  
 _`'Cause I shoot to thrill, and I'm ready to kill  
I can't get enough, I can't get the thrill` _  
  
AC/DC's 'Shoot to Thrill' erupted from the PA system of the quinjet as Iron Man flew down from the sky, the music catching the two figures by surprise, and fired a repulsor blast, knocking Loki down onto the steps behind him, painfully. The metal man landed on one knee in front of the God, red and gold paint shining in the dim street lights along with his triangle core, before standing and holding his arms up, showing a multitude of weapons in threat. Alex smiled and fist bumped the air with a small 'yes' as Loki was now outnumbered.  
  
 _"Make a move, Reindeer Games."_ Stark's voice came out slightly robotic through his mask. The Captain reattached his shield and walked over to join them, stern looking as ever with his helmet on. Loki’s Asgardian garb gently faded away in a golden glow and he raised his hands in surrender. Alex furrowed her brow.  _It couldn't have really been that easy, could it? "Good move."_ Tony lowered his arms at the submission.  
  
Alex would have said something, or at least revealed herself to the others and be recognised to be taken home, had she not then been grabbed from behind, one arm over her body, the other covering her mouth, and been dragged away. Alex kicked and yelled at her captor, turning to see a glimpse of Barton's face before she was hit in the back of the head, and everything went black yet again.  
  
She really needed to start paying more attention to her self-defence classes. Especially since Barton had been her teacher. If he hadn't been mind controlled, he probably would have complained.  
  
  
 **The next morning -** **09:32am**  
Alex stumbled out of her room, feeling tired but not sleepy, and walked into the lab with the ultimate confusion of where her phone and Loki were. But when she saw the extra iridium on the table, the memories hit her along with a headache.  
"I don't still have to work on this thing, do I?"  
  
"Yes. You do." Barton walked into the lab through the plastic screen, dumping another tube of iridium down on the table before tunning to her. Other NASA agents and Dr Selvig were all milling around the lab to mend the machine. "I'm still under orders to make you by any means necessary."  
  
"I could overpower you." She bluffed.  
  
"From past experience, I doubt that. Especially with a mild concussion." The Hawk responded coolly. Alex couldn't exactly deny his assumption was correct.  
  
"Find me something to eat, then I'll think about working and forgiving you for knocking me out." She crossed her arms at the fellow SHIELD agent. "Sir's orders," She added with a scrunched face of mockery. Barton's expression didn't change as he left to go fill out her order. Alex huffed and looked back at the machine, brushing down the bedhead she had and nearly tripping over the dress she had forgotten she was still wearing. The brunette took it off, thankful she'd kept the leggings and vest as she had done in fear the dress would disappear. She put the dress over an overhead ceiling pipe to hang on, out of the way, as she put up her hair and moved on to fix the machine with the iridium and stopping it from exploding and taking out half of the city.


	16. Dead engine

**Three days later - Alex's POV -** 01:32pm  
It took three days to build the machine and test it with the Tesseract. We had Barton put the cube in the machine while I hid behind a desk for cover as far away as I could get while still being classed as 'in the lab'. Nothing exploded, or fried, so we deemed it ready. That's when Barton told me to grab anything important and follow him onto the jet. I didn't know where we were going, but we were soon in the air and heading somewhere in the sky.  
  
A foreboding feeling settled in my stomach.  
  
 **3rd Person POV - SHIELD Helicarrier lab**  
"I thought humans were more evolved than this." Thor crossed his arms.  
  
"S.H.I.E.L.D monitors potential threats. " Natasha responded, trying to diffuse the situation.  
  
"And Captain America is on the threat poll?"   
  
"We all are."  
  
"You’re on that list? Are you above or below angry bees?" Tony grinned.  
  
"I swear to God, Stark, one more wise-crack..."  
  
"Threat! Verbal threat! I feel threatened."  
  
"Yeah! Manhandle me now. That'll be good!" Bruce's voice cut through the boy's fight.  
  
Outside and approaching the Helicarrier was Barton's jet, On a screen inside, was Loki’s sceptre, being tracked by the ship's computer. Inside, NASA agents and other men working for Loki put on masks and loaded their weapons. Barton readied his bow and handed over a pair of knives to Alex, who looked down at herself in her lab coat and hoped she wasn't taken as a threat when they landed.  
  
The ramp to the jet opened and Barton notched an arrow, took aim and let it loose. The arrow swung in the air and attached to the side of one of the carrier’s engines, flashing on standby.  
  
  
"Doctor Banner," Steve said apprehensively in the silence of the Wishbone lab. "Put down the sceptre." Banner looked down, surprised to see the spear in his hand. The monitor behind him made a noise, signalling the Tesseract had been located. Banner looked between his team and put the sceptre back on the table before walking over to the screen on the other side of the room. "Sorry, kids. You don’t get to see my party trick after all." He mumbled before starting to type.  
  
"Located the Tesseract?"  
  
"I can get there faster." Stark turned to leave for his suit and Rogers held him back by his arm.  
  
"You’re not going alone."  
  
"I’m not afraid to hit an old man." Tony smacked Steve's hand off his arm, already tense.  
  
"Put on the suit." Steve narrowed his eyes, matching Tony's stare right back to him. Banner removed his glasses, recognising the location onscreen.   
  
  
Barton knelt on the jet ramp and pressed a button on his bow. The arrowhead attached to the third engine exploded into flames, the blast completely destroying the side of the Helicarrier.  
  
Everyone in the lab felt the vibrations before they went flying in different directions at the force of the blast. Fury and Thor fell to the ground behind a worktable. Tony and Steve were blown towards the lab entryway. Banner and Natasha flew out the Wishbone lab and into the lower equipment room.  
  
Steve and Tony sat up and looked around the lab, the only ones currently moving, and scrambled to their feet.  
"Put on the suit."  
  
"Yep." Tony agreed as Steve helped him up and they ran out of the lab together, still stumbling from the aftershock.  
  
People all across the Helicarrier were running around, yelling and grabbing guns while the monitors in the Bridge were beeping wildly, trying to tell its workers what they could already see and feel. SHIELD Techs started panicking, running to their stations to try and keep themselves up in the air and not crash from hundreds of miles in the air.  
  
 _ **"All hands engaged."**_ The intercom ordered all SHIELD agents.  
  
Fury sitting up from behind the desk, Thor still unmoving beside him, groaned and pressed his earpiece.  
 _"Hill!"_  
  
Hill, standing her command area and looking at the screen of a tech, responded.  
"We’ve been hit. We got a fire in Engine Three. The line looks mostly intact but it’s impossible to get out there to make repairs while we’re in the air."   
  
 _"I’m on it."_ Tony's voice came over comms as he and Steve ran further into the airship.  
  
 _"Coulson, initiate defensive lockdown in the contingent centre. Then get to the armoury."_ Fury yelled over his earpiece as Coulson was stepping down the stairs towards the lower deck. _"Romanoff!"_  
  
Natasha’s leg was trapped under a pipe. Bruce in front of her groaned in pain before giving up and starting to twitch and spasm. He gripped the grated flooring to try and keep his control, but his eyes were already green, his face intense. "We’re okay, right?" She asked, uncertain. It didn't take long for her question to be answered.  
  
In his cell, far below them, Loki perked his head up and the sound of the Hulk roaring. He grinned.  
  
Steve ran through the corridors, brushing past agents running the opposite direction and jumping over debris before he finally arrived at the damaged engine, standing on the remaining part that hadn't been blown away, and staring out at the sky.  
"Stark! Stark, I’m here."  
  
Tony, now donned in his full Iron Man armour and in the air, flew close to the engine.  
  
 _"Good. Let’s see what we got."_ He stopped in the air to examine the engine, his suit scanning and creating a digital frame of what should have been there and how to fix it back without that part. _"I gotta get this superconducting cooling system back online before I can access the rotors, work on dislodging the debris. I need you to get to that engine control panel and tell me which relays are in overload position."_ The Captain looked around, jumping off the side and swinging himself over to the control panel. Tapping it, it opened up to him. _"What’s it look like in there?"_  
  
"Well, it seems to run on some form of electricity." Steve guessed, knowing he wasn't much help.  
  
 _"Well, you’re not wrong."_ Tony used his suit beams to remove any remaining debris from the engine as he talked Steve through the electrical parts to reassemble them properly.  
  
"’Kay, the relays are intact," Steve said through comms before pushing the engine control panel back in where it was before. "What’s our next move?"   
  
 _"Even if I clear the rotors, this thing won’t re-engage without a jump. I’m gonna have to get in there and push."_  
  
"Well, if that thing gets up to speed, you’ll get shredded."  
  
 _"Then stay in the control unit and reverse polarity long enough to disengage maglev and that should-"_  
  
"Speak English!" Steve yelled over the sound of rushing wind, stood at the edge and staring at the metal man. Tony rolled his eyes.  
  
 _"See that red lever?"_  Cap glanced to his side. There was indeed a lever.  _"It’ll slow the rotors down long enough for me to get out. Stand by it, wait for my word."_  Steve walked over to the lever and Tony started flying around, knocking pieces of debris off the rotors.   
  
  
Fury was shooting the enemies in the Bridge, trying to keep them away from other agents or taking over manual controls, until Barton from the upper level fired an arrow at the servers, hacking them, and sending another turbine offline.  
  
 _ **"Engine One is now in shutdown."**_ The Helicarrier tilted suddenly, both engines now having been knocked out on the same side. Everyone in the Bridge was sent rolling to the side as the aircraft dipped.   
  
 _"Stark, we’re losing altitude."_  
  
"Yep, noticed." Stark flew himself in between the rotors and putting his hands on one of the blades began to push, slowly picking up the pace as electrical sparks began to fly. Cap suddenly tripped off the edge of the engine as someone shot at him, only just gripping onto a loose wire to stop himself falling thousands of feet.   
  
Thor had left the Hulk to be dealt with by SHIELD jets, running to where he knew Loki's room was. He ran in to see the door opening and Loki stepping out. He charged, going straight through him and landing on the floor as the door sealed behind him. Loki reappeared instead on the walkway leading to the cage.   
"Are you ever  _not_ going to fall for that?" Loki chuckled. Thor struck the cage with his hammer, making the whole thing shudder. Loki grinned, looking around. "The humans think us immortal. Shall we test that?" The God moved to the control panel to open the floor beneath the cell.  
  
"Move away please." The sound of something powering up and Coulson's voice stopped Loki in his tracks, the smile disappearing off his face. The God weighed it up, lifting his hands and stepping back from the panel. Coulson gestured to the gun. "Do you like this? We started working on the prototype after you sent the Destroyer. Even I don’t know what it does. Do you wanna find out?" The gun powered up, ready to fire, when Loki materialising behind him and thrusting his spear through Coulson’s chest, the version of him in front of the agent disappearing.   
  
 _"No!"_  Thor slammed his hand on the cage glass as Coulson dropped to the floor, a red patch now staining his perfectly white shirt. Loki stepped over his body, returning to the panel and pressing the button, Thor's image dropping in a second as the cell fell from the bottom of the ship.   
  
"You’re going to lose." Coulson's slowly dying voice caught Loki. "It’s in your nature."  
  
"Your heroes are scattered, your floating fortress falls from the sky. Where is my disadvantage?" Loki smiled with a breath.  
  
"You lack conviction."   
  
"I don’t think I-" The weapon blasted Loki through the air and through a wall, into the next room. Coulson looked at the gun. "So that’s what it does."  
  
  
Natasha and Barton fought in the pipes. Barton grabbed Natasha’s hair with icy eyes and yanked it back to expose her neck for his blade. Romanoff bit into his arm and he let go with a groan. She spun, throwing Barton into the railing head-first. He paused, stumbling to the ground on his knees and groaning in pain before looking up.   
"Natasha?" His voice was unlike before, ice in his eyes fading. She still sent him a last punch, and he passed out on the floor.  
  
"I'm so glad  _I_ didn't have to fight him." Another voice from ahead made Natasha squint, then relax with a sigh as she recognised them.  
  
"Where have you been?" Natasha walked over to Alex, wanting to hug her but deciding it wasn't the time.  
  
"Busy." Alex sighed with a humourless laugh.  
  
  
 _ **"All hands to your stations immediately."**_  
  
The Helicarrier was still falling. Tony had gotten the turbines up to speed as was needing to make his exit.  
 _"Cap, hit the lever!"_ Steve was hanging from the wire still, climbing up and pulling himself onto the engine. _"Lever! Now!"_ Cap pulled himself up but it was too late. Stark was pushed back up against one of the blades, now spinning too fast for him to stay in pace with.  
  
"Uh-oh." Tony as thrown around the engine blades, losing control of his flight and suit as they dragged him around before Steve finally yanked the lever, giving him a chance to fly out and land beside him.  
  
Coulson was slumped on the floor with the gun in his lap. Fury knelt down by him called in the medical team.  
 _"Agent Coulson is down."_  
  
 _"A medical team is on its way."_  
  
 _"They’re here."_ Fury said as the rest listened quietly.  _"They called it."_


	17. 'Stark'

**3rd Person POV - An hour later**  
It was silent in the Bridge. Steve, Tony, and Fury gathered at the conference table, Steve and Tony sat down while Fury stayed standing. Hill stood to the side with crossed arms and a silent tongue as the rest comprehended the aftermath of the fight.  
  
Fury was the first to move, reaching into his trenchcoat pocket.   
"These were in Phil Coulson’s jacket. Guess he never did get you to sign them." He tossed what was in his hand onto the table, coloured cards scattered across the glass top. They were in good condition, save for a few that were spackled with fresh blood. Steve reached forward to pick them up and examine them. "We’re dead in the air up here. Our communications, location of the cube, Banner, Thor. I got nothing for you. Lost my one good eye." Fury paused. "Maybe I had that coming." The Director started walking around the table with careful steps. "Yes, we were going to build an arsenal with the Tesseract. I never put all my chips on that number, though, because I was playing something even riskier." Everyone present in the room glanced to the Director, all still silent as he stopped at a chair two seats away from Steve. "There was an idea, Stark knows this, called the Avengers Initiative." Fury picked out a chair between Tony and Steve from under the conference table. "The idea was to bring together a group of remarkable people, see if they could become something more. See if they could work together when we needed them to, to fight the battles that we never could. Phil Coulson died still believing in that idea, in heroes." Tony stood out of his seat, taking a breath and glancing around before walking off and out of the room. Steve remained sitting as the rest watched him leave in silence. "Well, it's an old-fashioned notion." Fury said, unsurprised.  
  
 _"But not too out-of-date to be defunct."_  A new voice echoed in the room. Attention from everyone was drawn to a doorway where a young woman with brunette hair walked in and leaned on the doorway. "Director. Captain." Alex nodded to the two figures and a short smile to Maria.  
  
"Miss Callaway." Fury turned to his lost intern. "Thought you might come back to us."  
  
"With minor injuries, I'm happy to say." Alex rubbed her arm where she'd tripped over and into a pile of debris. She wouldn't admit it was due to her own clumsiness, though. "Where'd he go?" Fury nodded in the direction of a corridor. Callaway nodded and started walking over as Steve stepped out of his seat and stuck out his hand.  
  
"Steve Rogers." He introduced, recognising her from the Bridge computer while tracking Loki.   
  
"Alex Callaway." She smiled tiredly and shook it. They dropped the handshake. "We need to find Stark. You know where would he go?"  
  
"Cage room is this way." Steve nodded in the direction of the corridor and began to lead the way. Alex was thankful for the Captain's hospitality.  
  
  
Tony was stood overlooking where the cylindrical glass cage used to be, hands on the yellow painted railing and thinking. Steve entered quietly, leaning on the wall and crossing his arms, looking at the empty place.  
  
"Was he married?"  
  
"No." Tony shook his head, voice softer than Steve was used to hearing. "But there was a pianist, I think."  
  
"Cellist," Alex spoke up, causing Tony to turn at the familiar voice. "You never did get that part quite right." She put her hands in her lab coat pockets, stepping forward so he could see her properly.  
  
"Alex." Tony blinked.  
  
"Hey, dad." She waved softly. Steve perked his head up.  
  
"What are you- what are you doing here?" Tony did not need this added stress right now.  
  
"Long story."  
  
"You have a daughter?" Steve asked.  
  
"You're supposed to be at MIT for the rest of the summer." Tony took a few steps towards her.  
  
"Long story." She repeated.  
  
"You have a  _daughter_?" Steve asked again, looking between the two. He couldn't see any real resemblance in appearance.  
  
"You're not supposed to be here. You  _can't_ be here." Tony began to have a mild panic.  
  
"Dad, as much as I appreciate it, do not go all father-figure on me right now." Alex rubbed her face. "I have had a very trying last three weeks. I didn't sleep last night, I just spent three hours in a jet with no seatbelts, fell face first into a pile of trash because I tripped over my own feet, and I want to get back at tall, green, and psycho just as much as you because honestly, I am too underpaid to deal with this crap." The intern's voice grew more and more frustrated with each word, before finally, with one soft look from her dad, sighing out. "And... I also really want a cookie. A big one. Like when- you remember when we went to the bakery on 7th?"  
  
"You have a daughter." Steve nodded.  
  
"Kiddo, I promise you, as soon as all this is over, I'll get you a really big chocolate-chip cookie." He put his hands on her upper arms. She smiled. " _If_ you promise you'll stay out of this from now on." Aaaaand the smile was gone as quick as it appeared. Callaway shook her head. Tony sighed. "I didn't think that would work."  
  
"Coulson's gone, Tony." Alex gently moved his hands off her shoulders. "He was like an uncle to me."  
  
"He was an idiot." Tony stepped back from her, moving down the steps.   
  
"Why? For believing?" Steve started walking over.  
  
"For taking on Loki alone."  
  
"He was doing his job."  
  
"He was out of his league. He should have waited. He should have..." Tony scoffed.  
  
"Sometimes there isn’t a way out, Tony." Steve sighed.  
  
"Right. I've heard that before." The two passed each other on the walkway.  
  
"Is this the first time you’ve lost a soldier?"  
  
"We are not soldiers." Tony turned to Steve, breathing deep. He glanced between him and his daughter, trying to calm himself. "I’m not marching to Fury’s fife."  
  
"Neither am I. He’s got the same blood on his hands that Loki does, but right now we gotta put that behind us and get this done." The Captain shook his head. Tony glanced to the spot where Coulson died, dried blood and a dent on the wall there now. "Now Loki needs a power source. If we can put together a list-"  
  
"-He made it personal." Tony looked back at him.  
  
"That’s not the point."  
  
"That  _is_ the point. That’s  _Loki’s_ point. He hit us all right where we live. Why?"  
  
"To tear us apart."  
  
"Yeah, divide and conquer is great but- he knows he has to take us out to win, right?" Stark crossed his arms, thinking. " _That’s_ what he wants. He wants to beat us, he wants to be seen doing it. He wants an audience." He started walking back up the steps.  
  
"Right. I caught his act in Stuttgart."  
  
"Jeez, I do not want to remember that." Alex shivered a little in remembrance of the night.  
  
"You were there?" Tony was on her instantly.  
  
"Long story. But I'm starting to get why he was there now, not just Barton." Alex started gently pacing a little strip on the walkway. "And now I know where he's going and why." She paused and looked at Tony. " _Dad-_ "  
  
"No, no. Let me do this myself, Kiddo." Tony waved his hand to stop her talking, the same thing he would always do when she figured something out before he did. Alex felt herself smile."Yeah. Stuttgart was just the previews, this is- this is opening night. And Loki, he’s a full-tail diva, right?." Tony looked at the two. Callaway nodded. "He wants flowers, he wants parades, he wants a monument built to the skies with his name plastered..." Tony stopped. Then he dropped his arm to his side. "Son-of-a-bitch." Tony started walking out.  
  
"Where is he?"  
  
"STARK Tower." Both Stark's said together as the three headed up to the main deck. Tony led them in the direction of the work lab first for his suit.  
  
"Stay inside. Go wait with Fury."  
  
"Not gonna happen." Alex stopped walking. Stark sighed and twisted to her. "Tony, I'm twenty-three. And believe me, I have just as big of a grudge as you do against this guy. If you think I'm sitting this out, you can forget it." Callaway crossed her arms. Tony gave up. He knew his daughter well enough to stop wasting time on a lost cause. He pressed his lips into a thin line.  
  
"Alright, but stick with Cap. Do as he says and don't get killed." Tony ordered in his father voice. Alex rolled her eyes at that.  
  
"Keep the skies clear." Alex kissed his cheek before turning back around to follow Steve down the hall as her father headed for the workshop. Steve grabbed his gear and got changed before leading Alex to the medical bay where he knew Natasha was.  
  
  
Steve opened the sick-bay door, walking in with Alex following. Natasha had been sitting on the bed, but now seeing him suited up, stood.  
"Time to go."  
  
"Go where?"  
  
"I’ll tell you on the way. Can you fly one of those jets?" The door to the restroom opened. Alex felt panic go through her for a moment as Barton entered, drying his hands.  
  
"I can." Barton nodded. The intern looked at Natasha, who nodded back at her. Alex took a second glance at Barton, realising the ice from his eyes had disappeared. She relaxed.  
  
"Got a suit?" Steve questioned.  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Then suit up." Steve directed. Nat held out an earbud to Alex, who's first voice to be heard was her fathers.  
  
 _"Uh, yeah, guys, if Alex is coming with us can someone make sure she puts on at least three bulletproof vests, please? I want her walking out of here in nothing less."_  
  
"Relax. We're on it. Nothing's gonna hurt the Little Stark." Barton teased with a small smile, readjusting his own earpiece as he looked over her lab coat and regular clothes.  
  
" _Callaway_. You know I take my mother's name, Barton." Alex squinted at him before smiling. "Good to have you back." Barton nodded and put the towel down.  
  
"There should be stuff in the locker room you can use," Steve said before nodding out towards the hallway. Alex followed him down to the lockerrom, picking out a regular SHIELD agent uniform and vest before meeting up with the others, all suited, to head into the jet hanger towards the Quinjet onboard.  
  
They headed up the open ramp and the agent inside stood out of his seat.  
"Hey, you guys aren’t authorized to be in here."  
  
"Son, just don’t," Steve responded, moving out of the way for the agent to move out of the jet, Barton sitting in the pilot's seat before the rest sat down, buckling in as they shot off out of the Helicarrier and into the sky towards the city. Alex glanced out of the window and smiled as she saw her dad racing alongside them, giving the team a quick wave before blasting forwards ahead of them. Callaway sat back in her seat, feeling the knives Barton had given her in her pockets, and knowing that even if she didn't want to, this was a fight in which she would definitely have to use them.


	18. Cry me a river

Iron Man flew toward the city, making his way to STARK Tower ahead of the Quinjet as he listened to Alex's explanation of the last few weeks to him. Tony reached the rooftop where Selvig and the device he and the mind controlled agents created, ready to open up the sky.  
  
 ** _"Sir, I turned off the arc reactor. The device is already self-sustaining."_** JARVIS's voice told him inside his helmet.  
  
"Shut it down, Dr Selvig!" Tony called out.  
  
"It’s too late! She can’t stop now. She wants to show us something! A new universe." Selvig's eyes were still glazed over. He wasn't in control of himself.  
  
"Okay." Tony sighed and fired at the blue, glowing barrier created around the device, but the Tesseract deflects it, defending itself and sending the energy back to Stark.  
  
 ** _"The barrier is pure energy. It’s unbreachable."_**  
  
"Yeah, I got that." Iron Man spotted Loki waiting for him on the platform outside the penthouse. "Plan B."  
  
 _ **"Sir, the Mark 7 is not ready for deployment."**_  
  
"Then skip the spinning rims, we’re on the clock." Tony flew down and gently landed on the pad, walking through as the walkway around him shifted, deconstructing his suit as he walked into the penthouse floor, keeping an eye on the God who walked into the house too.   
  
"Please tell me you’re going to appeal to my humanity." Loki smiled as he approached Tony.  
  
"Uh, actually, I’m planning to threaten you." Tony walked behind his bar, feeling a drink was probably in order for the end of the world.  
  
"You should have left your armour on for that."  
  
"Yeah, it’s seen a bit of mileage. You’ve got the uh- glowstick of destiny. Would you like a drink?" Tony pulled out a glass.  
  
"Stalling me won’t change anything."  
  
"No, no, no. Threatening." Stark picked up a decanter of something, opening the glass top. "No drink? Are you sure? I’m having one."  
  
"The Chitauri are coming, nothing will change that." Loki glanced out of the window at the sky, then back to Tony. "What have I to fear?"  
  
"The Avengers." Tony put three cubes of ice in his glass. Loki raised an eyebrow. "It’s what we call ourselves, sort of like a team. ’Earth’s Mightiest Heroes’ type thing." He poured his drink and capped the bottle again.  
  
"Yes, I've met them."  
  
"Yeah," Tony fake smiled. "Takes us a while to get any traction, I’ll give you that one. But, let’s do a head count here. Your brother, the Demi-God." Loki hissed under his breath gently, turning away as Tony picked up his tracking bracelets to slide on. "A super soldier, a living legend who kind of lives up to the legend; a man with breath-taking anger management issues; a couple of master assassins, and you, big fella, you’ve managed to piss off every single one of them." Tony picked up his glass again. "Not to mention my own personal grudge of you kidnapping my daughter for three weeks." Loki spun around.  
  
"The Intern is your daughter?" He had had no idea, not that he knew Tony had even existed until a few days prior. He couldn't help but feel a little smug satisfaction at the idea of having kidnapped his daughter, even if by accident.  
  
"Yeah, Reindeer Games." Tony smiled tightly. "So you've managed to piss us all off."  
  
"That was the plan." Loki was back to grinning again. Tony walked around his bar to approach him.  
  
"Not a great plan. When they come, and they will, they’ll come for you."  
  
"I have an army."  
  
"We have a Hulk."  
  
"Oh, I thought the beast had wandered off."  
  
"Yeah- you’re missing the point. There’s no throne, there is no version of this, where you come out on top." Stark stood in front of him. " _Maybe_ your army comes and  _maybe_ it’s too much for us, but it’s all on you. ’Cause if we can’t protect the earth, you can be damned well sure we’ll avenge it." Tony took a gulp of his drink. Loki stalked over slowly, sceptre starting to glow.  
  
"How will your friends have time for  _me_ , when they’re so busy fighting  _you_?" The God growled, placing the tip of the sceptre over Tony's arc reactor with a metallic clink. Nothing. .Loki pulled his sceptre back and tried again, feeling deja-vu from the first time he'd tried the same with Alex. "This usually works."  
  
"Well, performance issues. It's not uncommon. One out of five--" Tony was grabbed by the throat and tossed across the room, dropping his glass to shatter on the floor. "JARVIS, anytime now." He mumbled into his earpiece as Loki walked over and grabbed him again.  
  
"You will all fall before me."  
  
"Deploy." Tony was lifted off the floor by the God. "Deploy!" Loki sent Stark crashing through the window, flipping in freefall and narrowly missing other buildings and a crane and plummeting toward the ground. The Mark 7 flew over Loki's head and out of the smashed window after its creator. Barely a safe distance above the ground the suit caught up to him, tracking the bracelets and moulding onto his body, forming a full suit and facemask. Tony swerved and stopped himself hitting the pavement before boosting back up to the penthouse floor to glare at Loki.  
  
"And there’s one other person you pissed off! His name was Phil." Iron Man fired a repulsor blast at Loki, knocking him back into the room.  
  
The Tesseract's machine powered up, firing blue energy at the sky and circling around to create a shimmering blue portal that opened up into space, showing the Chitauri army waiting on command. Aliens quickly began to fly through as the way was opened up for them. "Right! Army." Tony flew towards the incoming army, shooting at them. The Chitauri fired right back at him before one on a hovercraft crashed straight into him.   
  
Citizens down below on the streets started to panic at the display above them, screaming and running away in hopes of not being blown up by the ships or falling alien bodies and debris.   
  
Loki walked out of the penthouse and onto the landing pad, his Asgardian armour shimmering as it materialized across his body. He held his staff firmly as he looked down over all the screaming and chaos reigning down below. The thunderclap came before the God landed on the balcony across from him.  
"Loki!" Thor yelled and his brother turned with a hiss. "Turn off the Tesseract or I’ll destroy it!"  
  
"You can’t. There is no stopping it. There is only the war!" Loki pointed his sceptre, ready to fire.  
  
"So be it." Thor charged and Loki leapt off the pad, the two starting their fight. Thor knocked at his staff when Loki blocked him, firing a blast as it was knocked off course and instead loosened and sent one of the letters of 'STARK' crashing to the ground below where luckily no civilians were standing.  
  
In the distance, seen through the clouds, the Quinjet holding the rest of the Avengers headed towards the commotion.   
 _"Stark, we’re on a three heading northeast."_  Nat slipped into the co-pilot seat and pulled on her headset.  
  
"What, did you stop for drive-thru? Swing up-park, I’m gonna lay ’em out for you." Tony flew around a large group of Chitauri, grabbing their attention and leading them past the tower, taking a sharp turn and sending some of the troops crashing into a building-side.   
  
Barton and Natasha drove the jet after them, lowering the cannon and starting to thin out the herd still following Stark. The Chitauri started aiming for the jet's wings and barely grazing the outer armour as Barton led the jet to swing around STARK Tower's side, spotting Loki and Thor still fighting out in the open.  
  
"Nat!"  
  
"I see 'em." Natasha aimed the gun as Loki spotted the jet, knocking Thor to the floor and blasting the jet's engine with his sceptre and it quickly caught fire, spinning out of control. Thor tackled Loki to the ground.   
  
Inside the jet, Barton and Nat held onto the console to try and regain control. Alex and Steve were tossed out of their seats and sent rolling before they grabbed onto the sides of the jet. The plane crashlanded down in the street, sliding across the concrete, sending everyone shaking, and slowly came to a scraping stop just in front of a building, narrowing ploughing straight into it. As the jet stopped moving and everyone regained their balance, the back ramp opened up, letting everyone run out of it and into the street.  
  
"We gotta get back up there." Cap came to a stop on the street, the others following.  
  
"I need to get to the Tower," Alex told them as her head drifted up to look at the sky, eyes widening.  
  
The portal was opening wider, making room for what was to come next. The four stared up at the sky as a giant armoured warship of the Chitauri swam out through the portal with more warriors on its sides, roaring as they came down from the sky. The Leviathan swung down into the streets, Chitauri soldiers jumping off and onto the sides of buildings, starting to shoot at the civilians.  
   
"Stark, are you seeing this?"  
  
 _"Seeing. still working on believing. Where’s Banner? Has he shown up yet?"_ Tony responded, following the Leviathan crashing through the streets and into buildings without a care.  
  
"Banner?"  
  
 _"Just keep me posted."_ Stark followed the warship, scanning it. _"JARVIS, find me a soft spot."_ He ordered, firing tests blasts at its armour in hopes of making an impact. The Leviathan seemed unfazed as it flew overhead of the streets. Cap thought maybe now would be a good time to move, but when he looked back at everyone to give the order, Alex was gone.   
  
  
Thor had managed to wrestle Loki down, holding him with his hammer and hand around his neck, directing him to the chaos that was now Manhattan below them.  
"Look at this! Look around you! You think this madness will end with your rule?"  
  
"It’s too late. It’s too late to stop it." Loki panted, tired and his face cut and bleeding in places.  
  
"No. We can, together." Thor promised him. Loki turned to him and paused, then was materialising a knife and stabbing Thor through the gut.  
  
"Sentiment!" Loki growled before Thor picked him up, throwing him hard against the balcony floor. Loki grabbed his sceptre, catching Thor's knees and rolling his brother off the edge of the building. Thor called for his hammer and caught himself from falling, spinning the hammer in his grasp and back flying up before getting caught up in a herd of Chitauri that led him away from Loki.  
  
Loki grumbled, standing uneasily and headed back inside before anything else could hit him. He stumbled for a second before standing straight and walking more normally but walking back in he paused in the centre of the room and huffed.  
  
"There's not a great many people who can sneak up on me." Loki turned to the corner beside the elevator, watching as his Songbird walked out from behind it, no longer dressed like a SHIELD agent.   
  
"You knew I'd come for you." She was dressed in a blue and black [bodysuit ](https://switchpile.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/38306099-38306102-large.jpg)she'd borrowed from Tony, slightly modified to fit people with boobs and the bright letters of 'STARK' removed from the front. As well as a few minor weapon adjustments and padding.  
  
"Stark's daughter." Loki huffed.  
  
"You of all people should know that your father doesn't define you." She stepped towards him and they slowly started circling each other. "Why are you doing this? Can't you just give up and tell your master to go fuck himself?" Alex shrugged, watching him as she walked. Loki smiled, but it wasn't in humour. "I've been shown what's happening out there. This will bring nothing but death and destruction. And for what?"   
  
"I was born to rule. If that comes at the cost of a few mortals, who am I to stand in the way of my birthright?"   
  
"You are absolutely insane. Normal people wouldn't even  _dream_ of doing something like this."  
  
"I am not human. I never was. So I don't know why you expect me to act like one." Loki snapped back, stopping in his circling and stepping towards her. "By now, I’ve come too far for anything else. And I will not stop." Alex walked towards him directly.  
  
"Why? What's the point? Can't you just sit down and rant out your feelings to someone over a cup of coffee or something?" They stood barely three paces away from one another.  
  
"I am Loki, of Asgard, and I am burdened with glorious purpose." He hissed. Alex smiled and took another step forwards.  
  
"Well, I am Alexandra Jessica Callaway-Stark, and I am burdened with glorious sarcasm."   
  
"I do not wish to fight you," Loki warned her, his voice suddenly taking a soft, unexpected, turn.  
  
"What is that phrase we mortals use?" Alex looked at the ceiling, squinting and imitating his words before dragging her to Stuttgart. "Ah, yes." Alex looked back at him, unsheathing a knife. "Cry me a river, Mischief." She threw the knife at him. He dodged it and glared at her.  
  
" _Fine_. If you wish it that way, prepare to lose your wings, Songbird."  
  
They charged at each other.


	19. Suit

Iron Man soared through the air outside, following another Leviathan that had come swimming through the portal and into the streets. Tony fired a stream of ammunition at the warship, gaining its attention as it turned around from the screaming people running away and to start to follow Tony.  
"Well, we got its attention. What the hell was step two?" Stark quickly took off to escape and not be eaten by a giant extraterrestrial thing.  
  
Barton and Natasha were on the ground, fighting in the streets. Barton swung his bow, tripping one of the aliens before jamming an arrow into its head. Natasha jumped on the back of another, using her Widow’s Bite to take him down before picking up its weapons and blasting others away with it. She continued to take a hoard down, shooting one, then spinning around and stabbing another in the neck. Barton released another arrow seconds before being tackled to the ground, stabbing the alien before being kicked onto the trunk of a cab.   
  
Upstairs, Alex was tossed across the floor by the strike of the God, rolling and standing again, taking out both blades in hand.  
"Stop fighting before you are seriously hurt." Loki urged.  
  
"You started this." She threw the knife at him, slicing his cheek and clattering to the floor. Loki hissed, touching his cheek, bleeding, before swinging the sceptre and knocking Alex's legs from underneath her. They continued sharing blows, Alex knew Loki was holding back from his true strength, but eventually nailed his face with a direct punch and hearing his nose crack. Or was that her hand? Hard to tell with the adrenaline pumping. Loki shook his head and struck her across the cheek, making her land on the floor at the force. She paused, then looked at her like she had when he last slapped her, holding her cheek. "How could you?" She looked up at him with a voice sounding as if she was about to run off. Loki paused, blinking.  
  
"I'm--" Alex kicked his knee and jumped on him, pinning him to the floor. Loki grabbed her hands, wrestling her off him and picking her up, throwing her off and onto the balcony where she rolled and nearly fell off the edge, only just catching herself by gripping onto the side with her fingers. The rest of her dangled over the edge, dangerously.  
  
"Loki!" She yelled out for him. Loki paused again. He wanted to force her off the edge, but a bigger part of him wanted to pull her back up. He was soon kneeling at the edge and lifting her back onto the building, looking half-panicked and half-relieved. Alex panted, looking at the oncoming Chitauri ships speeding past.  
  
"Stop fighting," Loki demanded before rolling off the edge, himself. Alex nearly screamed until Loki landed on one of the passing ships, escaping with a hoard of Chitauri. Alex stood, grabbing her knives and running for the elevator.  
  
On the floor, Barton and Nat were getting surrounded by Chitauri soldiers. They were holding them off as more and more encircled them before Cap rejoined them, knocking Chitauri out of the way with his shield and breaking them apart. Thor dropped beside them with an earth-shaking sound, sending Chitauri flying with either a hit or a bolt from his hammer.  
  
"What’s the story upstairs?" Cap calmed down his breathing as he turned to Thor.  
  
"The power surrounding the cube is impenetrable."  
  
 _"Thor is right, we gotta deal with these guys."_ Tony chipped in over comms as Alex rejoined them with only a few minor cuts and newly forming bruises.  
  
"How do we do this?"  
  
"As a team."  
  
"I have unfinished business with Loki." Thor stepped forwards.  
  
"Oh yeah? Get in line." Barton huffed, fiddling with his arrows.  
  
"That's my dibs first." Alex crossed her arms.  
  
"Save it. Loki’s gonna keep this fight focused on us and that’s what we need. Without him, these things could run wild. We got Stark up top, he’s gonna need us to..." Steve trailed off at the sound of an approaching motor engine, turning around to see Banner arriving on an old motorbike. The group walked over as Banner stepped off the bike, looking around at the scene.   
  
"So, this all seems horrible."  
  
"I’ve seen worse," Nat said softly.  
  
"Sorry."  
  
"No, we could use a little worse." She shook her head.  
  
"Stark, we got him," Cap said on comms.  
  
 _"Banner?"_  
  
"Just like you said."  
  
 _"Then tell him to suit up. I’m bringing the party to you."_ Iron Man, still up in the air, flew around the corner and towards the group on the ground, the Leviathan following quickly on his tail.   
  
"I- I don’t see how that’s a party." Natasha stumbled as Tony continued to lead the warship down to the rest of the Avengers. Banner glanced at the Captain before he turned and began walking towards the danger.  
  
"Doctor Banner. Now might be a really good time for you to get angry." Cap nodded.  
  
"That’s my secret, Cap. I’m always angry." Banner said over his shoulder before turning to the creature, clenching up as his body turned large and green, transforming into the Hulk, and punched the Leviathan in the face when it reached him, stopping it in its tracks and crushing it into the street. The creature stopped and began to flip over in the air.   
  
"Hold on!" Tony fired a few small missiles at the creature, causing it to explode onto the street. Barton and Thor ducked behind a car with Alex while Cap raised his shield to cover himself and Natasha. The Chitauri surrounding them all ripped of what would be their face masks and cried out in a challenge.  
  
The Avengers gathered themselves to stand in a circle. The Hulk roars as Hawkeye notched an arrow, Thor spun Mjolnir as Black Widow loaded her gun. Captain America stood ready, Iron Man hovered before landing next to the Hulk and Alex, ready.  
  
Loki, sitting in a ship above, glanced down before speaking.  
 _"Send the rest."_  
  
On command, a multitude of Chitauri and Leviathans swarmed out of the portal and into Manhattan, swerving down on airships and warships towards them.  
  
 _"Call it, Captain."_ Came Stark's voice.  
  
"Alright, listen up. Until we can close that portal up there, we’re gonna use containment. Barton, I want you on that roof, eyes on everything. Call out patterns and strays. Stark, you got the perimeter. Anything gets more than three blocks out, you turn it back or you turn it to ash."   
  
"Wanna give me a lift?"  
  
 _"Right. Better clench up, Legolas."_  Iron Man grabs Barton and flies him up to the top of a building, then flies off.  _"Also, was that my suit, Alex?"_  
  
"Not anymore." Alex smiled.  
  
"Thor. You gotta try and bottleneck that portal, slow ’em down. You got the lightning, light the bastards up." Cap directed. Thor swung Mjolnir quickly by the handle, flying off and towards the taller buildings of the city. Cap turned to Nat. "You, me, and Callaway, we stay here on the ground, keep the fighting here. And Hulk..." Hulk turned around. "Smash." Hulk grinned at the permission given, then leapt off the ground and up to a close building, taking out the aliens hanging on the side.  
  
  
"Stark. You gotta lot of strays on your tail." Barton fired at the Chitauri he could see, taking them out with a multitude of differently designed arrows.   
  
 _"Just tryin’ to keep them off the streets."_ Tony led a group following him away from civilians.  
  
"Well, they can’t bank worth a damn." Barton aimed at the aircraft closest, shooting behind his back without looking and hitting a bullseye as the craft exploded. "Find a tight corner."  
  
 _"I will roger that."_  Tony flew between a few tall buildings with narrower streets, picking off a few as they didn't turn in time to stop themselves crashing.  _"Oh boy."_ A few of them got close to grabbing Stark, so he turned and started leading them through a tunnel, turning tightly at the end and sending the last few aliens crashing into a building.  _"Nice call. What else you got?"_  
  
"Well, Thor’s taking out a squadron down on 6th."  
  
 _"And he didn’t invite me."_ Tony tutted.  
  
  
Natasha and Alex fell into a rhythm as they fought. They had both trained together in SHIELD over the summer and could work in unison without thinking. Nat was tossed onto a car and Alex shot the alien in the head. The intern was quickly jumped on from behind and starting to be strangled before Natasha flipped over the Chitauri and shocked it with her Widow’s Bite, making it release her and fall. Alex nodded, rubbing her neck, and Natasha relaxed, leaning against a car.  
  
"Captain, none of this is gonna mean jack shit if we don’t close that portal." Alex looked up at it.  
  
"Our biggest guns couldn’t touch it."  
  
"Not our guns," Alex said, and Nat glanced at her before looking at the Captain.  
  
"You wanna get up there, you’re gonna need a ride." Steve looked up at the aliens overhead. Natasha saw the Chitauri crafts flying past.   
  
"I got a ride. I could use a boost though."  
  
"You sure about this?" Cap stood a step to steady himself, holding his shield ready in front of him.  
  
"Yeah. It’s gonna be fun." Natasha nodded before running at Rogers and jumping on his shield. Steve pushed her up so she could grab onto a ship and kick off the back alien before stabbing through the front and using it to control the vehicle. "Turn, turn! Ah!" Nat swerved the ship to avoid fire from other ships that spotted her.  
  
Alex picked up another spear gun, stabbing and firing at anything that dared come near her. Tony flew down and landed by her and Cap, using his repulsor blast to reflect off Steve's shield and slice a few Chitauri in half before grabbing another and flying it into a building.   
  
Cap and Alex worked on the ground holding off the remaining Chitauri of the area. Alex knocked the final one into a sharp pile of debris.  
  
 _"Captain, the bank on 42nd, past Madison. They cornered a lot of civilians in there."_ Hawkeye informed them over comms. Steve turned to Alex and motioned to her.  
  
"We're on it." Cap jogged to the bank with Alex in tow, still carrying the spear gun.  
  
At the bank, Cap jumped up from a lamppost through the window and grabbed the nearest alien, snapping its neck and throwing it away. Alex climbed in the window after him.  
"Everyone clear out! This isn't a drill!" She yelled out to the people on the ground floor before being grabbed by a Chitauri, who she flipped over and stabbed with the spear through the chest. Two remaining Chitauri set off a grenade-like device and toss it towards the two. Alex ducked behind a wall and Cap hit it back with his shield before he jumped behind it and was blown out of the nearest window and onto a parked car. Alex waited a second before she came around the corner with a relieved sigh. Then she spotted the Chitauri who hadn't been caught in the blast setting another one off in her direction. She quickly jumped out of the same window Steve had been blown out of, landing on something hard as an explosion sounded behind her and bits of debris flew overhead. But when she landed, it wasn't her who exclaimed in pain. She glanced down to see she'd apparently landed on the American Flag... oh, wait, that was just Steve.  
  
"Sorry." She rolled off him and onto the trunk of the car with a groan.  
  
"How did you know I'd be here to catch you?" Steve looked at her.  
  
"I didn't." She told him before pulling herself out of the mess of metal and glass, grabbing his arm and pulling him off after her.


	20. Shwarma

_"Director Fury. The council has made a decision..."_  The councilwoman onscreen where Fury stood in the Bridge argued.  
  
"I recognize that the council has made a decision, but given that it’s a stupid-ass decision, I’ve elected to ignore it."  
  
 _"Director, you’re closer than any of our subs, you scramble that jet-"_ A councilman spoke up on another screen.  
  
"That is the island of Manhattan, Councilman. Until I’m certain my team can’t hold it, I will not order a nuclear strike against a civilian population." Fury spoke, irritated, with his hands on his sides.  
  
 _"If we don’t hold them in the air, we lose everything."_  
  
"I send that bird out, we already have." Fury swiped his hand over the screens, hanging up on all four council members.  
  
  
Natasha flew through the air on the Chitauri ship, still using the dead pilot to drive. Ducking as she was shot from behind, she glanced back to see Loki cashing her on his own craft with a growl.  
  
"Oh. You." Natasha reminded herself before speaking into her comms. "Hawkeye!"  
  
Barton looked around and noticed her on the ship in the distance.  
"Nat, what are you doing?"  
  
"Uh, a little help?" Natasha ducked her head to avoid the fire, eyes switching between Loki and where she was heading. Clint stood, pressing a button on his bow before grabbing an arrow and locking it, watching as Natasha began to pass.   
  
"I got him." Barton smiled, aimed and quickly fired ahead of where Loki was travelling so the arrow was in the right place to hit him. The arrow flew through the air, ready to hit the God, before Loki caught it inches from his face, looking at, then smirking at Barton. The arrow exploded less than a moment later, sending Loki crashing onto the balcony at the top of Stark Tower, knocking off the 'S' and 'T' of 'STARK' on the tower as he landed. Now the only letter remaining was the 'A'. Barton chuckled.  
  
Natasha drove towards the Tower, jumping off the craft as soon as she was close enough, rolling as she hit the roof, nailing the landing and flipping her hair back.  
  
Loki looked up, growling, but staying lying down in the shattered glass to regain his energy.  
  
Upon the roof, Dr Selvig was waking up from being knocked down by Iron Man. His eyes opened, icy blue hue no longer overtaking them and took in the scene of destruction around him.  
  
Natasha walks toward the Tesseract.  
"The sceptre..." Selvig mumbled, sitting up dizzily. Natasha turned at the voice and walked over to him.  
  
"Doctor." She kneeled beside him.  
  
"Loki’s sceptre, the energy- the Tesseract can’t fight. You can’t protect against yourself." Selvig continued to mumble out.  
  
"It’s not your fault. You didn’t know what you were doing." Natasha assured him as he turned to look at the machine.  
  
"Well, actually I think I did." Selvig looked back at her. "I built in a safety to cut the power source."  
  
"Loki’s sceptre." Nat nodded. Selvig moved to the edge of the roof.  
  
"It may be able to close the portal. And I’m looking right at it." Selvig looked down to the balcony below, where Loki was pushing himself up from the floor, sceptre by his side.  
  
On the ground, Steve and Alex were up and fighting again, slowly clearing the streets with the help of the police to evacuate people from damaged buildings and keeping them away from the fight.  
"There's too many up there," Alex said, seeing countless ships in the sky before getting an idea and looking at Steve. "Boost me."  
  
 _"Uh, no. No boosting. She stays there with you, Cap. Do not let her get on one of those ships."_ Tony was on comms instantly. Alex rolled her eyes.  
  
"Come on, Cap. Look up and tell me 'no'." Alex said softly. Steve's cowl was down, so she could see the contemplation as he looked around him, before nodding silently at her. Alex smiled and took a few steps to copy what Natasha had done, glancing up and picking the ship she wanted on, running at Steve who boosted her up and onto the edge of a ship. The alien on the back spotted her, so she grabbed him to pull off while simultaneously pulling herself up to stand. There was one more, the pilot, who turned around and screamed in her face. Aliens really needed to use mouthwash. She kicked it off from the controls and down to the streets into a pile of rubble before grabbing the controls as well as she could, shakily guiding the ship up and further into the air. Thor shot past her, hammer guiding the way as he knocked through a group of Chitauri in his path. Alex studied the controls for a few seconds, getting the gist before trying the guns. They shook the balance of the ship like the kickback on a gun would, so she applied the knowledge and found the ship easier to fire and control the more she flew around, starting to get the hang of it as she drove around Barton's rooftop, shooting the ones about to jump him away and exploding in the air.   
  
 _"Alex!"_  Tony's voice yelled out loud and over comms. Alex looked around, feeling major deja-vu. She didn't understand where from at first, then it hit her. This had happened in her dreams, what the Tesseract had shown her. But it didn't matter, because suddenly a ship was crashing into the front of hers, and she wobbled off, losing her grip on the controls, going into freefall. Fuck.  
  
The sky above her was an open field, aliens and portals sharing the skies. The world around her was a mix of chaos and madness, and the floor below her grew quickly closer. She was going to die.  
  
 _ **"Songbird!"**_  A different voice this time, not her fathers. The same one from her dream. Someone she couldn't see. But this time she knew the voice. Loki.  
  
Alex hit something.  
  
Loki, leaning over the side of the balcony and watching the female fall screamed for her, thrusting his arm out fast, materialising a net below her in hopes he wasn't too late. He was a second away from missing her, and she hit the net. Loki breathed out a long breath, relaxing and then feeling confused at why he had just saved her, but not having much time to think on it as he heard roaring, soon grabbed by the hands of the Hulk and tossed through the remaining window of the Tower penthouse, flying back into the wall to land on the floor. The Hulk roared and followed him inside and chased after him.   
  
 ** _"Enough!"_**  Loki stood and yelled at the creature. "You are, all of you, beneath me! I am a God, you dull creature, and I will not be bullied by-" Loki couldn't finish as Hulk grabbed his ankle, beginning to smash him against the penthouse floor, hard enough to almost completely crumble the structure, before finally throwing him down onto the floor on his back, where Loki stayed lying, paralysed.   
  
 _ **"Puny God."**_  Hulk huffed and walked away to the balcony. Loki was left still, whimpering out a long noise of pain.  
  
Thor flew through the air, fighting the Chitauri standing on the back of a Leviathan. The warship swerved and crashed through a building, followed closely by Stark, who started shooting lasers at it.   
 _ **"Sir, we will lose power before we penetrate that shell,**_ _ **"**_ JARVIS told him. Iron Man pulled away from the Leviathan. He flies fast.  
  
 _"JARVIS, you ever hear the tale of Jonah?"_ Tony got an idea.  
  
 _ **"I wouldn’t consider him a role model."**_ JARVIS tried pointlessly to warn him against whatever idea he had. Tony headed directly into the creature’s mouth, blowing up the creature’s insides with little missiles before shooting out of the tail end. Tony crashed into a car outside a shwarma shop but quickly stood back up again before getting shot down once more by Chitauri surrounding him.  
  
Barton was quickly being cut off from escape on his rooftop. He reached for another arrow but realised his quiver was empty, which meant it was time to move. He used his bow to smack away anything too close before pilling a used arrow out of a Chitauri body and applied a newly designed arrowhead on it. Barton ran away from explosions behind him and jumped off the building, twisting in mid-air and firing the arrow to hook onto the side of the building and swing himself through a window below to escape the line of fire.   
  
On the Helicarrier deck, Hill noticed something on her screens in the Bridge.  
"Sir, we have a bird in motion."  
  
Fury checked his screen before running out of the bridge.  
"Anyone on the deck we have a rogue bird. We need to shut it down! Repeat, takeoff is not authorized!" Fury grabbed a weapon and ran out onto the deck, kneeling and taking out the moving jet with a missile launcher. He breathed out in relief before a second jet took off past him. He lifted the launcher to aim but the jet was already too far away to chance a shot and so he headed back inside and to his station.  _"Stark, you hear me? You have a missile headed straight for the city."_  
  
Stark blasted away Chitauri from his position before standing and scanning the sky.  
 _"How long?"_  
  
 _"Three minutes. Max. Stay load can wipe out mid-town."_  
  
"JARVIS. Put everything we got into the thrusters." Tony shot off the ground.  
  
 _ **"I just did,"**_  JARVIS responded as Tony flew in the direction of the nuke.   
  
  
Further into the city, Cap and Thor worked together to destroy a gaggle of aliens together, watching each other's six's. Cap turned another way and was shot in the ribs, dropping his shield. Thor responded by sending a car rolling and knocking the aliens down before helping Steve to his feet. "You ready for another bout?"  
  
"What, you gettin’ sleepy?" Steve asked, holding his ribs where blood was gently seeping through his suit though it was nothing serious. Alex ran over, jumping off a broken car and stabbing through two aliens threatening to come at the two boys from behind, kicking away half the body of both aliens. She then threw the spear with the top half of Chitauri bodies on it off to the side. "Where've you been?" Steve asked her, almost accusingly but half concerned.  
  
"Skydiving." Alex breathed hard, rubbing her lower back.  
  
  
Natasha on the STARK Tower roof grabbed Loki's sceptre off the balcony and ran back up to the machine where Selvig was checking the equipment and checking his calculations.   
"Right at the crown!" He directed. Natasha gripped the sceptre and began to push the end through the barrier surrounding the cube. It took her some effort to break through it, but she was at least breaking through it and nearly at the crown.   
  
 _"I can close it. Can anybody copy? I can shut the portal down!"_ She yelled over comms.  
  
"Do it!" Steve heard and responded.  
  
 _"No, wait."_ Tony butted in, still flying after the missile.  
  
"Stark, these things are still coming!"  
  
 _"I got a nuke coming in, it’s gonna blow in less than a minute."_ Stark swung himself around, grabbing onto the bottom of the missile so he could guide it with it sat on his back. _"And I know just where to put it."_  
  
"You remember when we had the talk that if  _I_ don't get to do anything stupid,  _you_ don't get to either?" Alex asked sarcastically over her earpiece.  
  
 _"Save the rest for the turn J."_ Tony ignored her.  
  
 _ **"Sir, shall I try Miss Potts?"**  
  
"Might as well."_Tony flew into the city.  
  
Pepper, in a plane far away from the city, was sat up in her seat in a panic, watching the news with three other employees of hers.  
  
" _Streets in New York City have become a battle ground. The army is here trying to contain the violence but clearly it is outmatch-"_ The news reporter said. Behind her, her phone started ringing but she ignored it in her state.  
  
Tony flew through the city streets and past the others. Thor, Alex and Cap looked to the sky. Tony redirected the missile, barely missing Stark Tower as he flew past, and pushed it up towards the portal, following along with it.   
  
Tony flew up and into the portal, holding his breath as he went into outer space, his suit systems starting to fail at the altitude. Stark finally let the nuke go as all the lights in his suit went out, including his arc reactor. The suit started to fall with hardly any gravity back towards the portal as the missile hit the Chitauri mothership and caused it to explode. Tony's eyes closed.  
  
The Chitauri back on earth all collapsed around the city, and the Leviathans started to fall from the sky, lifelessly.  
  
Natasha stood, looking around for Stark's return, waiting.  
"Come on, Stark."   
  
"Close it," Steve ordered when there seemed no sight of Stark coming back. Alex looked at him with wide eyes at the order.  
  
Natasha gulped and thrust the sceptre into the heart of the machine, and the portal started to close above. But just before it closed completely, the shine or red and yellow metal came falling back to earth. The Avengers looked up to see Tony falling back towards them. Alex sighed in relief.  
  
"Son of a gun." Steve squinted as he looked up. But Tony wasn't flying. He was falling.  
  
"He’s not slowing down." Thor started swinging his hammer, ready to fly at catch Stark, before the Hulk beat him to it, grabbing him in the air and sliding down building sides before crashing into the street a few metres away. Hulk tossed Iron Man off him and to the floor on his back while Thor, Alex, and Cap ran over. Thor pulled off Iron Man’s faceplate and Cap listened for a heartbeat, then sees the arc reactor is not glowing. Alex held her breath, trying not to have a panic attack that was for once not induced by a nightmare.  
  
Suddenly, the Hulk roared loudly and beats his chest with his fists. Tony's eyes flew open as he sucked in a breath, shocked and afraid for a second. He looked around, calming his breathing down.  
  
"What the hell? What just happened?" He looked between his relieved teammates. "Pleasetellmenobodykissedme." Tony got out in a rush as Alex collapsed beside him, resting on the chest of his armour and Steve sat back on his knees.  
  
"We won." Steve panted gently. Alex felt the hand of the Iron suit petting her hair.  
  
"Alright, hey. Hurray. Good job, guys. Let’s just not come in tomorrow. Let’s just take a day." Tony said, sounding exhausted and fried. Alex perked her head up with a humourless laugh. "Have you ever tried shawarma? There’s a shawarma joint about two blocks from here. I don’t know what it is, but I wanna try it." Tony smiled, tiredly. Alex rolled her eyes and rubbed her face with a gloved hand.  
  
"We’re not finished yet," Thor announced, looking up at the Tower where Loki still was.  
  
"And then shawarma after?" Tony asked, hopefully.  
  
Up in the Tower penthouse, Loki crawled over to a stair, covered in bruises and cuts, aching all over from the rough treatment of the Hulk. Loki paused as he realised he was not alone and turned to see the Avengers surrounding him, Hawkeye right in his face with an arrow. Natasha was holding his sceptre while Hulk growled. Alex stood by her father, looking at him.  
  
"If it’s all the same to you," Loki adjusted himself on the step, hissing under his breath lightly. "I’ll have that drink now."


	21. Bridge

**The next morning - SHIELD Bridge**  
 _"Captain America saved my life. Wherever he is, and wherever any of them are, I would just- I would wanna say thank you."_  
  
Fury leaned forward and turned the CNN interview off.  
  
 _"Where are the Avengers?"_  A councilman, on a different screen than the one the interview had been displayed on, asked.  
  
"I’m not currently tracking their whereabouts. I’d say they’ve earned a leave of absence."  
  
 _"And the Tesseract?"_  
  
"The Tesseract is where belongs... out of our reach." Fury crossed his arms.  
  
 _"That’s not your call."_  
  
"I didn’t make it. I just didn’t argue with the god that did."  
  
 _"So you let him take it and the war criminal Loki, who should be answering for his crime." The councilwoman sighed._  
  
"Oh, I think he will be." The Director hid a smile.  
  
 _"I don’t think you understand what you’ve started, letting The Avengers loose on this world. They’re dangerous."_  
  
"They surely are, and the whole world knows it. Every world knows it."  
  
 _"Was that the point in all this? A statement."_  
  
"A promise." Fury nodded. The council signed off, the conversation clearly over, and Fury exited his private meeting room.  
  
  
This was the morning everything was supposed to be set back into place. In the centre of Manhattan, Loki was taken by Thor to meet the rest of the Avengers and the newly-freed-from-control Dr Selvig. Gathering on the footbridge, Alex carried the briefcase containing the Tesseract, having been one of the few members of the group that knew how to remove it safely from the doomsday machine, as Thor brought Loki to stand in the middle of the stone pattern on the bridge in a muzzle and handcuffs that were most certainly not from Earth.  
  
Alex put the case on the ground, opening it as Selvig retrieved a glass cylinder out of the truck he drove there in. Dr Banner used a pair of tongs to safely lift it and deposit the cube into the glass cylinder before it was sealed for protection.  
  
Thor smiled, shaking hands and saying his goodbyes to Selvig and Callaway for keeping things in order. As Thor went on to thank the others and congratulate them on a battle well fought, Alex caught Loki looking in her direction, looking mad. But by now she could see under his first-impression expressions, and the anger wasn't directed at her, but something deeper that Alex knew she would never be able to distinguish was there for her. Alex was reminded of the shock of being in freefall, surely at least going to snap her neck as she hit the ground, but it had never come. And she knew she didn't hallucinate the net that caught her, but as soon as the shock had passed as she stood, it dissipated into thin air. He'd saved her. And neither one of them had any real idea of why. But deep down, even if it was unbeknownst to themselves, they did know why.  
  
Thor finished his goodbyes and held the cylinder, gesturing it to Loki, who after a moment's pause since he was still staring at Alex, finally grabbed one end, Thor twisted the device, which lit up and the two vanished into the sky in a flash of blue. Alex let go of a breath she didn't know she was holding, looking around at everyone who was ready to start going their separate ways. She had spent the night before in the safety of her father's company in one of the few undestroyed hotels that had been taking in evacuated people, before getting up the next day to travel here on her motorcycle, also knowing it was a miracle it had survived in STARK Tower's garage.  
  
Steve and Tony shook hands together with a parting smile before he came over to Alex to shake her hand. Alex nodded to the Captain as he headed over to his motorcycle. Natasha took a duffel bag full of Dr Banner's things from SHIELD out of her car and handed them to Bruce as Barton hugged the intern and headed to the driver’s seat. Natasha hugged Alex, now that there was no threat to deal with first, before sliding into the car and driving off with Barton.  
  
Tony offered Bruce a lift to anywhere he needed, who had said he wanted to go somewhere well away from anywhere. Tony countered with a small holiday home and the offer of coming back to the Tower at any time before letting Banner sit in the passenger seat and paused halfway into the car when Alex approached him, instead opting to perch on the edge of the car with a smile.  
  
"So, what are your plans now then, kiddo? Going back to your moms? University? I'm sure MIT will want you in their complete year since you kinda screwed them over and skipped out on their summer program." Tony teased gently.  
  
"Fury called me in, not really giving me any other option. How could I have said no?" Alex shrugged, crossing her arms.   
  
"Oh, it's easy, just let the word tumble out of your mouth like this: ' _no_ '." Tony made an exaggerated mouth motion and Alex rolled her eyes. "Say it with me: ' _no_ '. The same thing you say when a cute guy I don't approve of asks you out: ' _no_ '."  
  
"Get over it." Alex gently shoved his upper arm with a smile. Tony chuckled warmly. Alex sighed and looked at her boots before back up at her father. "You going back to the Tower?"  
  
"Yep. I'm dropping Banner off on the way. He really needs to learn how to strut, but I think he's earned a bit of downtime after this whole thing." Tony gestured to around them. His daughter hummed. "It's going to take a while but I will be building the Tower back up with Pepper."  
  
"Let's hope she's not going to be involved with only 12% of the process," Alex smirked. Tony scoffed.  
  
"She tell you about that?"  
  
"Oh yeah. Called me this morning to tell me to tell you that you're in some serious shit for that missile." Alex smiled and Tony rubbed his face, hearing Banner chuckle softly from behind. "In slightly more polite terms, of course."  
  
"Of course." Tony stood off the car and hugged her. "You're always welcome at the Tower, kiddo." She smiled and hugged him back.  
  
"I'll take you up on that soon enough." Alex smiled and pulled out of the hug. "Plus, I'm owed a cookie, am I not?" She grinned.  
  
"Yeah, sorry to say but I'm pretty sure I crashed into that place during the fight." Tony rubbed the back of his neck, clicking his tongue. Alex looked at him, flatly. "But, when the Tower gets rebuilt, you could bake all the cookies you wanted in the penthouse kitchen." Tony grinned in replacement. Alex sighed, arms crossed, but ended up smiling. Tony chuckled and stepped into the car driver's seat, putting on his sunglasses. "Don't forget to call ahead."  
  
"But I love surprising you and being all dramatic about it."  
  
"You are definitely a Stark," Tony smirked and started the car. "Love you, Kiddo."  
  
"Keep the skies clear." Alex clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Dr Banner." Alex tried not to have a minor geek out at the meeting of Dr Banner who she had studied for a few years during college and was a fairly big fan of. Banner smiled, shaking her hand before Alex gave Tony a mock salute and the drove off towards the city. The intern chuckled and walked over to her bike that had been parked next to Steve's, and was surprised to still see the Captain sitting on his bike and checking over the handlebars.  
  
Alex kicked her leg over the side of her [bike](http://www.saferwholesale.com/v/vspfiles/photos/SSR-XF200GY-E-2.jpg), settling down on the seat and smiling at the Captain.  
"Race you to the Tower?" She grasped the handles.  
  
"Uh..." Steve looked up with a smile. "I think I'm gonna head home. Or wherever home is right now for me." He played with the keys in his hands. The younger nodded. "Are you going straight to the Tower, then?" The intern sighed.  
  
"I don't know. Things are kind of complicated now, aren't they?" She scuffed her boot against the stone bridge floor, then looked at the Captain. "Do you know how much attention all my social media got lately because of news reports from yesterday? This morning, I went from being his daughter that the media had no real interest in because they were more focused on my father because I'm boring as fuck compared, to the next international shock since my dad first became Iron Man because we both almost died on camera."  
  
"Why are they not as interested in you?"  
  
"That is a painful conversation for another day." Alex patted his shoulder twice. A phone started buzzing, and after a look of  _'you expect it to be mine?'_ from Steve, Alex pulled out her backup phone given back by her dad that morning to see the caller ID. "Oh, speaking of painful conversations." She groaned and put the phone to her ear in an answer. "Hey, mom."  
  
 _"Hey, Alexandra,"_  Alex's mother's sweet tone came over the phone. The younger braced for the oncoming conversation at the signal of the use of her full name rather than the short version.  _"So, what have **you** been up to this summer? Because I could have sworn that Massachusetts Institute of Technology was at least four hours away from Manhattan with all this busy summer traffic. And I was under the impression that you were living in Massachusets for the remainder of the summer months."_  
  
"It's... a long story." Alex chewed her lip.  
  
 _"That's what you say when you don't want to explain something."_  
  
"No, honestly, its a  _really_ long story," The brunette insisted. "Like the story is that long if I wrote it all down it would be over at least one hundred pages. And I'm pretty sure it wouldn't even be properly completed by then." Alex spoke and ignored the interjections of 'Alex' through her speech coming from the other end of the phone. "And then I'm sure I wouldn't be able to do it or any of the people in it justice to what I've experienced in the last three weeks."  
  
 _" **Alex**."_ Her mother called when Alex paused for breath. Alex let the breath go and closed her eyes.  _"I'm not annoyed. But you can imagine my immense concern when I saw you fall thirty feet to almost your death. As well as your father going through the strange thing in the sky."_  
  
"You and I both." Alex glanced at Steve who was smiling to himself, playing with his keys. She was thankful for the company.  
  
 _"So, care to fill me in on what the news reports left out about you fighting an army of 'Chi'... 'Chita'.... aliens in New York?"_ She had to either be reading the paper or on her laptop online.  
  
"Well, I'm not dead, clearly. So that's good." Alex chuckled half-heartedly, picking at a thread on her jeans. "I swear I will give you the full run-through the next time I see you. Promise."  
  
 _"Does that mean you're coming home? Maybe actually going to try and finish your course at MIT this time?"_  
  
"To be honest, mom... I think I might stay here for a while?" Alex replied slowly, squeezing her eyes shut. There was silence on the other end. "I might as well stay and help the heat die down after this whole thing. Plus it might be a good thing to go out and try something else for a change, take a break from all the education stress. Gap year, almost." The brunette chewed her lower lip again. "Are you alright with that?"  
  
 _"Perfectly. And it will be good for you to spend more time with your father. For you both."_ Her mother assured her. Alex smiled in relief.  _"Call me if anything changes or if you need anything. And I mean anything."_  
  
"Thanks, mom. I love you."  
  
 _"Love you too, darling."_ The dial tone sounded in her ear. Alex knew they were back on good terms, putting her phone back in her pocket.  
   
"So, you're staying in New York then?" Steve asked, putting his keys in his bike, finally.  
  
"Seems like it." Alex nodded. "Race you to the Tower?" She asked again, smiling.  
  
"Another time, perhaps."  
  
"Alright. But don't be a stranger. Drop by the Tower anytime. Or call if you need anything."  
  
"I'll remember that." Steve smiled as Alex took her keys out. "Nice bike." The blonde complimented as she pulled on her helmet, starting the engine.  
  
"Thank you. I built it myself." She winked, flipping her visor down before driving off across the bridge and in the direction of home, certain that this was the start of something even crazier than the last three weeks of her life... if that could ever be possible. And as fate should have it with Alex, it always was.


	22. 1 year later...

**One year or so later...**  
 ** _Bzz... bzz... bzz..._**  
  
My hand tapped around the bed, looking for my phone with closed eyes.  
  
 ** _Bzz... bzz... bzz..._**  
  
I picked up the phone, sliding the lock to turn off the alarm and blinking to read the bright screen in the darkness of my room.  
"JARVIS. Morning routine, please."  
  
 _ **"Good morning, Alex. It is currently** **7am** **, Tuesday 18th December, the weather in Malibu is sixty degrees with scattered clouds. Surfing conditions are a little rough with a high tide at 10:52am."**_ JARVIS responded as the windows to my room flipped, revealing the Malibu coastline of California that the house overlooked with all the usual over-the-top displays stretching across the window telling me things I wouldn't care to know.  ** _"Mr Stark, as you have probably already summarised, has not slept in the last forty-eight hours since Miss Potts is away on business."_**  I chuckled at the robotic tone and checked my phone for social media and texts. As usual, there was a stockpile of questions sitting there for me that a year ago I wouldn't have had. It was only after about three dozen press conferences and dad doing all but telling everyone to fuck off and leave me alone that the heat about my existence and joining the fight died down. I could live with the extra attention, especially when someone came up asking for my autograph and calling me a hero to which I look at them with the expression of someone who's just heard the sentence _'you know we've got rid of July'_.  ** _"There is your usual recommended dosage of painkillers and mineral water beside you."_**  I looked at the bedside table to see a note from dad and the pills. I took them quickly, standing up on wobbly legs and hobbling to my closet to pick out an outfit.  
  
"Thanks, J." I picked out a pair of denim shorts, regardless of the fact it was winter, and after a struggle to get them on, picked up a few shirts. "Band shirt or baseball tee?" I looked to the ceiling.  
  
 ** _"You have fewer dirty baseball t-shirts."_**  
  
"Thank you." I pulled on a simple one, coloured 3/4 sleeves with a plain grey bodice, and closed the closet before heading to the door, forgoing shoes.   
  
 _ **"Alex, I'm sure Mr Stark would feel better if you were to not walk around like this,"**_  JARVIS advised as I headed for the newly-installed elevator.  
  
"Yes, well, JARVIS, since when have I ever listened to my dad?"  
  
I tripped over nothing and fell to the penthouse floor. My crutch scattered across the polished wood, practically mocking me and I glared at it.  
  
 _ **"Since you broke your leg, I would recommend that you start to."**_ The AI smarted back to me and I glared at the ceiling, almost wishing it could understand facial expressions. I was quickly distracted from the thought by the pain coming from my leg brace and hissing as I sat up.  
  
Yes, I broke my leg. I broke my leg doing some stuff. Stuff in my lab. Stuff to try and protect the earth with. Cool stuff. I was working on a lot of busy projects this year. I was getting back into the swing of things and working with my dad. I was helping to protect the earth. I was- I- I... slipped when I saw a spider in the shower.

It happens. Shut up. Arachnophobia is a serious thing.  
  
Standing back up, grabbing my crutch to lean on, I headed to the elevator and down to Tony's lab to check on what the creepily eccentric man was doing. Stepping out onto the floor and typing in a code on the door, I manoeuvred my way into the lab, narrowly missing standing on a skateboard and breaking my other leg.  
  
"No, no." Tony's voice made me look over to half a car in the corner where he sat on a stool beside it, holding a welding iron. "You're on rest for another week yet. You aren't allowed in here." He rolled away from the car, usual tight shirt and pants instead of a vest because of the colder temperatures.  
  
"You can't ground me to one floor, Tony."  
  
"JARVIS, initiate floor clean up. Fast as possible, please." The fellow mechanic ordered, putting the welding iron on a workbench and pulling his black rubber gloves off. DUM-E was already sweeping up in the corner as I passed the robot, patting its 'head'. Other smaller robots started clearing random pieces of material away from the floor and out of my path as I walked over.   
  
"I am going stir crazy upstairs."  
  
"Banner said three months. It's only been two and a half, and I already compromised on the wheelchair." Tony started rolling away, holding his hands up.  
  
"Tony."  
  
"And it's not like your room isn't nice. You have one of the nicest rooms in this place." He shrugged, then furrowed his brow at me. "Also, what are you wearing? It's winter, its freezing. You're wearing shorts and no shoes. It's like you  _want_ to break the other leg."   
  
"Tony, honestly, I love how protective you are of me, but I am an adult and you can't make me stay upstaiiirs," I whined, despite my argument of adulthood, and began to follow him across the room, knocking a hologram of the Mark 47 out of the way.   
  
"I'll have Bruce come to check later in the week if that makes you feel better but that thing is most likely not coming off until after Christmas, and that means you stay out of here until Christmas." He kicked away another scrap of material to the side with his converse shoe.  
  
"Aw, come on! That suuucks." I sat in a chair and groaned at the ceiling, sighing dramatically. "I hate broken legs. They're stupid."  
  
"Well, we can't do much about it other than let it heal, can we?"  
  
"Unless you actually let me  _work_ in the workshop rather than kicking me just because of this." I shook my leg and winced as it hurt, gritting my teeth. "Look, I'm working on some new tech from an idea from MIT that's supposed to help things like this. Its supposed to be like a cast but at least let the person move a little, like an exoskeleton. And if I could just get the parts to work collectively and support-"  
  
" _Alexandra_." Tony using my full name made me stop. "It's staying on. You're staying upstairs. And that's the end of it." He spoke matter-of-factly and I sighed, slumping in my seat and holding my crutch in my lap.  
  
"I'm still not happy about it."  
  
"Then go to your mothers."  
  
"I will."  
  
"Yeah right."  
  
I hated how much he was right. Mom would probably be even more babying towards me than him.  
  
"Dr Banner is nice," I mumbled, looking at the floor. Banner had been to the newly built Tower a few times, as well as everyone else, now having their own floors and rooms, they would drop in every now and then. I had my own lab on my floor, and I was pretty proud of it since I helped design the newer version of the building. "Can he really come over again?"  
  
"Yes, he can." Tony turned to a desk beside him and picking up a pen. "And you can have your little fangirling moment with him again."   
  
"Shut up," I grumbled back, crossing my arms. "His work on anti-electronic collisions is unparalleled." I continued to mutter. "But you're more of a fan of the way he loses control and turns into an enormous green rage monster."  
  
"Yes." He pointed the pen at me. "By the way, I found this the other day." He tossed something at me and I nearly fell off my seat to catch it. I looked at the notebook, flipping over the front page to see a familiar greeting message. "You never did tell me the full story of what happened in there." Tony continued as I flipped through a few of the scribbles and notes, smiling to myself at the memories.  
  
"Not much to tell. I was kidnapped by a vengeful god for three weeks before helping to defeat him in the final battle in New York." I shrugged, putting the notebook to the side.  
  
"I don't know how you survived that long while being such a bad liar." Tony huffed back. I sighed. "Have you seen the videoes from the fight?"  
  
"I try not to look," I answered. Tony turned to a screen, typing something on the holoscreen and bringing up a video share website, showing the screen to me and pressing play.  
  
The video was of shaky shots of the battle, Hulk roaring in the distance and Thor flying past before it focused on a Chitauri ship being led by a non-alien. By me. I flew into a hoard and was distracted, getting knocked off and falling. I remembered the feeling vividly. I saw myself fall further and further towards the floor before the camera cut off with a single few frames catching a small glimmer of gold that broke my fall. But I doubted many other people that weren't me or dad knew that that wasn't just a lighting error by the feed. Tony rewound the footage and stopped it just before it cut out.  
  
"Do you know what that is?" He gestured to the golden shimmer paused on screen. You couldn't even make out the shape. But I knew it was a net, and so I could personally see that in the frozen picture.  
  
"Camera glare?" I shrugged as nonchalantly as I could. "Dad, I don't want to talk about this. I don't like remembering this. Same as you." I told him. He looked at me, squinting his eyes. I knew about his nightmares. I guess that was something I'd inherited from him since childhood. "I know what you're suffering, no matter how well you try and hide it."  
  
"I agree with you. I don't want to talk about this." He turned the holoscreen away from us both. The lab was silent, save for the regular mechanical whirs of whatever Tony was working on and DUM-E still sweeping up in the corner. "Have you eaten today?" He looked back at me.  
  
"Have you?" I fired back. His silence told me 'no'. "Have you eaten in the last two days?" The further silence made me sigh. "You promised you'd try--"  
  
"Lets order pancakes." He cut me off. "Extra syrup, extra sugar, extra fast." He tried to get us off the subject, and damn it, it worked. My stomach rumbled and gave away any other argument I had.  
  
"Good call."  
  
We ordered pancakes, and both went upstairs to get them from the front door, which I soon came to realise was Tony's way of tricking me out of the lab and demanding I stay in the main floor where my room was. I pretended I wasn't annoyed by the fact he'd managed to trick me so easily, instead, I shovelled pancakes in my mouth to make up for the lack of conversation before Tony disappeared into the lab and I was left upstairs, awaiting Pepper's return or walking around boxes set out for Christmas decorating.  
  
If dad didn't let me help with the decorating, I was going to blow a fuse. Yes. The mechanic just said that. And I didn't just mean figuratively.


	23. 'Wormhole'

**2 days later - Thursday 20th - 2:34pm**  
"It is looking like it's healing up well. All the muscle tissue is repairing in the way it should and at a positive rate. Your bone is fixing up with the help of the support but unfortunately, I would say you still need to keep this on for... at least another week or so."  
  
"Uuuuuugh."  
  
"Told ya, Kiddo."  
  
"Shut  _up_ , Tony." I glared playfully at my father as he grinned, proud of himself, as Bruce finished up and put the support back on my leg and his more high-tech than he should have had equipment back in his bag. Probably something from SHIELD or even Tony, if I had to guess.  
  
"Although, you could possibly get away with being in the lab. If you are under supervision." He flicked his eyes between us both.   
  
"Thank you, Dr Banner." I smiled happily at him at the last fact and he nodded back to me, kneeling off the floor beside the living room sofa I was perched on.  
  
"It's been good to see you, Banner." Tony smiled, taking a handshake since a hug wasn't really the best option, and saw Bruce out the door. And no, to clarify, I did not have a little fangirl moment over the Doctor when he came here to check on my leg like Tony would have led you to believe. Their conversation became incoherent as I sipped on my hot chocolate with mini marshmallows and watched Tony see Bruce out to the car before coming back in and closing the reinforced laminate glass doors, turning to me with a smirk.  
  
"Told ya so."  
  
"Tony, I swear..." I grabbed a crutch and manoeuvred myself off the sofa to stand. He chuckled and walked back over, jeans and band shirt as usual with his triangle glowing reactor shining through the chest. "At least you didn't ban me from the decorating." I looked around at the few decorations we had, a tall tree in the corner beside the window and a few streamers above the fireplace and kitchen counters. There was a stocking above the fire for each of us, even one for JARVIS and DUM-E. All were currently empty, but I had Tony and Pepper's gifts ready in advance, waiting on Christmas to come.  
  
"That's because I didn't want to wake up with fairy lights tying me to the corner while you went and did something I didn't want you to do." Tony shrugged, picking up his hot chocolate from the coffee table.  
  
"I wouldn't have done that." I smiled at him. "Though now that you mention it--"  
  
 _"No."_  Tony glared back at me, now having realised his mistake of giving me the idea. I chuckled and held the hand not holding onto my crutch up to pacify him. "Alright. I'm heading back downstairs." He stretched and walked to the stairs.  
  
"Cool. Need any help with the Mark 47?" I started to follow.  
  
"Who, whoa, where do you think you're going? You're not allowed in the lab." Tony turned to stop me walking - _more like hobbling_ \- behind him.  
  
"'Without supervision'. You're going down there. That means I can too." I smirked.  
  
"That's how you're playing this?" Tony crossed his arms. I tilted my head to the side. "Fine. I just won't go back downstairs. I'll stay up here until Christmas." He said, sitting on the edge of the sofa, hands on his thighs. I scoffed.  
  
"You won't last twenty minutes."  
  
"Watch me."  
  
  
Staying on a rolling chair and not touching anything important was the condition Tony made seventeen minutes later. So I just played hologram tennis with JARVIS while dad worked on his Mark 47 and touched everything else apart from the suit. I literally rolled around the entire lab contents with dad saying _'don't touch that'_ and moving to the next object closest to me before hearing a  _'or that'_. Good times. Or at least they were until the next day.  
  
  
 **Later that night - 9:45pm**  
 ** _"Sir, please may I request just a few hours to calibrate--"_**

"No. Forty-eight." The sound of an injector hissing met my ears. "Ah!" I walked out of the elevator and through the door with my passcode to see Tony wiping his arm free of blood. "Micro-repeater implanting sequence complete."  
  
 ** _"As you wish, sir. I've also prepared a safety briefing for you to entirely ignore."_**

"Which I will." He put the cloth on the tray beside him. Right, let's do this." Tony glanced up to DUM-E currently wearing a 'dunce' cap and sweeping up. "How did you get that cap on your head? You earned it." He stood out of his seat and walked over to the suit-up platform. "Hey. Hey! What are you doing round in the corner? You know what you did. Blood on my mat, handle it." He gestured back to the station he'd been sitting at.

 _ **"Sir, may I remind you that you've been awake for nearly seventy-two hours."**_  
  
"Focus up, ladies. Good evening, and welcome to the birthing suite." The mechanic addressed the row of suits in glass cases in front of the platform. "I'm pleased to announce the imminent arrival of your bouncing, bad-ass, baby brother." Tony turned to the robot, the one JARVIS was normally on control of, and holding a camera pointed to him. "Start tight and go wide, stamp in time. Mark 42 autonomous prehensile propulsion suit test. Initialize sequence."  
  
I had a feeling this wasn't a good idea.  
  
Tony, still not having noticed me, raised his hands and typed in the air to activate the new suit, parts lighting up on a workbench nearby. "JARVIS, drop my needle." On command, music on the record player began, a Christmas song with a more upbeat baseline and Tony started dancing, eyes closed. I inwardly cringed at his literal 'dad' dancing. He reopened his eyes and shook himself out before throwing up the injected arm and gesturing it to the dismantled suit. Nothing happened. "Crap." Tony hit his arm a few times over where he'd injected himself before again pointing his arm. I watched as this time, a part of the suit flew over, attaching itself to his hand and extending to his arm. Two other pieces followed, this time going for his upper arm and across to his shoulder. Tony pointed the opposite arm toward the suit and the second part attached itself to his hand and forearm.  
  
The billionaire laughed, clapping and holding his hands up in the air.  
"Alright, I think we got this. Send 'em all." Tony moved his hands with his thumb and pinkie finger out in gesture. The right leg was the next to fly around and attach itself to him, unfolding all the way up to his leg. The next part, however, travelling a little faster, flew past Tony and into a case of an Iron Man suit behind him. He frowned. Another piece flew at him and he deflected it, sending it up into a light and across the room. "Probably a little fast, slow it down. Slow it down just a..." Tony ducked as a part shot over his head and narrowly missed knocking him out until next Christmas. "... a little bit." The pieces started flying over and attaching themselves with more force than necessary, one to his left leg and the other to his crotch which looked painful as fuck, one on his back nearly knocking him on his face. "Cool it, will you, JARVIS?" All the other parts including the main chest plate and backplate all joined in before the faceplate was the last thing to fly over, and knocked into the record player on its way, scattering to the floor. Tony watched it as it flew up and faced him, hovering. "Come on. I ain't scared of you." The faceplate shot towards him, the corner of the desk knocking it upside down. Tony flipped over, letting the face connect into place before landing and standing in the fully formed suit. "I'm the best."  
  
The piece previously stuck in the case shot back out, knocking him and all the other pieces of the suit off the platform to scatter all over the floor, except for the headpiece which remained, thankfully. He groaned, rolling over and taking the helmet off.  
  
 ** _"As always, sir, a great pleasure watching you work."_**  
  
"Thanks, JARVIS," Tony mumbled, pushing himself up from the floor and getting on one knee before freezing at the sight of me in the doorway. There was a moment's pause. "How much of that did you see?"  
  
"Oh. Only all of it." I smiled. Tony groaned and stood the rest of the way up, kicking at a piece of the offending suit. "That is so going on YouTube, by the way."  
  
"Do that and I'll tell the press it wasn't you training in self-defence that got you your broken leg."  
  
"You wouldn't dare."  
  
"Try me." Tony stretched and popped the kinks in his back and shoulders. I cringed again. "What are you doing down here?" He asked, and my smile slowly dropped off my face.  
  
"There's something on the TV you need to see."  
  
  
 **The next day -** **01:37pm - Malibu Bar**  
 _"The s_ _ame_ _suit, but painted red, white, and blue. Look at that. And they also renamed him Iron Patriot. You know, just in case the paint was too subtle."_  
  
"It tested well with focus groups, alright?" Rhodes turned to Tony as Joan Rivers mocked him on the bar TV. I put all three of our drinks down and sat on my stool.  
  
 _"'I am Iron Patriot'."_ Tony put on a deep voice to imitate him.  
  
"Listen, War Machine was a little too aggressive, alright? This sends a better message." Rhodes explained. I passed him his water and he thanked me.  
  
"So what's really goin' on? With The Mandarin. Seriously, can we talk about this guy?"  
  
"It's classified information, Tony," James responded. Tony gave him a look and shuffled closer, lowering his tone. "Okay, there have been nine bombings."  
  
"Nine." I rubbed my temple.  
  
"The public only knows about three. Here's the thing, nobody can ID a device. There are no bomb casings."  
  
"You know I can help, just ask." Tony ignored his drink. "I got a ton of new tech, I got a prehensile, I got a- I got a new bomb disposal. Catches explosions mid-air." Considering how well his suit experiment went yesterday that probably wasn't the best idea.  
  
"When's the last time either of you got a good night's sleep?" Rhodes glanced between us both.  
  
"Don't ask. Just don't." I put my head in my hands, crutches resting in my lap.  
  
"Einstein slept three hours a year. Look what he did."  
  
"People are concerned about you guys.  _I'm_ concerned about you guys."  
  
"You're gonna come at me like that?  
  
"No. No, look, I'm not trying to be a dic..." Two small kids approached the table beside us, one elder girl and one younger boy. "...tator." Rhodes remained PG.  
  
"Do you mind signing my drawing?" The girl, couldn't have been over twelve, handed Tony her drawing.  
  
"If Richard doesn't mind." Tony smiled at James, picking up a crayon. "You alright with this, Dick?" The drawing was Tony in the Iron Man suit, taking the missile up into the sky. "What's your name?"  
  
"Erin." The girl smiled back.   
  
"Can I get your autograph?" The boy, who had been quiet up until now, tapped my shoulder and slid me his own drawing. I smiled politely and nodded, scribbling my name at the bottom of the colourful drawing of Stark Tower and someone -I assumed me- falling through the air with a golden thing below me.   
  
"Listen, the Pentagon is scared," Rhodes mumbled quietly. "After what happened in New York... aliens, come on. They need to look strong. Stopping the Mandarin is the priority, but it's not..."  
  
"It's superhero business, I get it." Tony's grip was getting harder on the crayon.  
  
"No, it's not, quite frankly. It's American business."  
  
"That's why I said I... got it." Tony started to break down his sentence and snapped the crayon on the page, putting his hand to his head and looking suddenly ill. "I broke the crayon."  
  
"Dad? You feeling alright?"  
  
"Are you okay, Mr Stark?"  
  
"Tony..." Rhodey put his hand on Tony's shoulder and he jumped.  
  
 _"How did you get out of the wormhole?"_ The boy whispered and set Tony off. He stood out of his seat, starting to stumble out of the bar. I and Rhodes looked at each other before getting up.  
  
"Wait a minute! Tony!" Rhodey ran ahead and I struggled to follow on my crutch while people began following Tony outside. I realised Tony was having a panic attack, rushing out and nearly landing in a bush because of the stupid steps going up into the bar before catching up with the two, Tony kneeling down in his suit and Rhodey crouched beside him.  
  
"Come on, man. This isn't a good look, open up."  
  
 _"Sorry, I gotta split."_  Tony stood and quickly blasted off into the air as I panted and watched him with a half-concerned half-cursing mind.  
  
"Can you..?" Rhodes gestured up at the sky.  
  
"I'll make sure he's okay." I nodded, looking across the street to see Happy getting out of the car and watching Tony fly off before running over to me.  
  
"Everything okay?"  
  
"Yeah. Well, no. I'm a Stark, nothing will ever be okay." I chuckled breathlessly and Happy didn't really smile. "Can you drive me home now please?"  
  
"Come on." Happy guided me across the road and into the back seat of the car, putting on my belt and the crutches beside me before getting into the driving seat and racing off home to the penthouse. Tony had always had nightmares, but this was one of the few times I'd ever seen him in a real panic attack when he was awake. And that was probably one of the worst gifts I had ever inherited off of him to share.


	24. Happy

Happy helped me out of the car, both of us momentarily fazed by the fuzzy bunny rabbit sitting there addressed to Pepper, and I was actually glad it was not for me. Saying a thank you to Happy and heading inside, having JARVIS give me the rundown on Tony's health because I was apparently 'locked' out of the lab by dad's orders for the day after being out to stretch my legs in the bar, I sat and waited for something else to happen. I was not disappointed when the Mark 42 came up from the lab stairs and sat beside me.  
  
 _"Everything good?"_ He turned to me, resting a foot on his opposite knee.  
  
"I should be asking you that." I said to the faceplate, knowing I'd rather be having this situation face to face. I would have said as much if heels clicking by the door didn't catch my attention."  
  
"I'm sorry I'm late. I was... What the...? What is that?!" Pepper, I smiled as I heard her voice and her confusion, walked in and gestured to the suit. "You're wearing this in the house now? What is that, like Mark 15?"   
  
 _"Uh... yeah. Something like that."_  Tony stood, hiding the mark '42' on his suit arm from her view.  _"You know everybody needs a hobby."_  
  
"Hi Pepper." I smiled and waved, she did the same to me, happily. Pepper and I knew each other well, and even if dad loved her, he still loved my mom, just not in the same way I suppose. But I've never felt annoyed towards Pepper, and she's never shown me a nasty face so I wouldn't give her one.  
  
"Oh, and you have to wear your hobby in the living room?" Pepper turned her attention back to Tony who started walking around.  
  
 _"Just breakin' it in. You know, it's always a little pinchy in the_ _gooey_ _bag at first, so."_ Tony shook his ass and Pepper laughed, walking to the sofa. _"Oh hey, did you see your Christmas present?"_  
  
"Yes, I did. I... I don't know how I could have missed that Christmas present. Is it gonna fit through the door?" Pepper sat down.  
  
 _"Well actually, uh...it's a good question. I got a team of guys comin' tomorrow, they're gonna blow out that wall."_ Tony gestured with his arm to the far wall he had no intention of blowing out.  
  
 **"** Okay."  
  
 _"So, uh... tense? Good day?"_ The suit walked behind Pepper and started rubbing her shoulders.  _"Ooh shoulders, a little naughty. Naughty girl. I don't wanna harp on this, but did you like the custom rabbit? Nailed it, right?"_  
  
"Wow. I appreciate the thought very much." Pepper lifted his hands from her shoulders and turned around, standing. "So why don't you lift up that face mask and give me a kiss?" As much as I didn't mind them, I did not want to see that.  
  
The mechanic knocked the metal helmet with his hand.  
 _"Huh. Yup, dammit. No can do. You wanna just kiss it on the... the facial slit?"_  
  
"Well, why don't I run down to the garage and see if I can't find a crowbar to shimmy that thing open?" Pepper smiled and began heading for the stairs. I grabbed my crutch and stood, walking after her but heading for the elevator.  
  
 _"Crowbar. Yeah. Oh, except there's been a... uh... a radiation leak."_  
  
"I'll take my chances." Pepper slipped off her shoes and started walking down the stairs, the suit chasing after her. I decided to let them both be and instead lounge around the living room for a few hours before heading to bed with a hopeful mind for sleep.  
  
  
Sleeping didn't last long, woken by small nightmares that I didn't remember seconds later and getting up to get a glass of water. Stumbling out of the room with my crutch, I froze as something passed me with speed. Nearly bashing the Iron suit over the head for jump-scaring me, I noticed it was speeding towards Tony's room without so much as a glance at me. I quickly followed after it, mind running on ruined sleep and being a lot slower than the suit, I only managed to get to the door when Tony made it separate on the floor into pieces, both him and Pepper looking terrified.  
  
"I must have called it in my sleep. That's not supposed to happen. I'll recalibrate the sensors." Tony sat down, running his hands over his face as he panted. Can we just... just let me... just let me catch my breath, okay?" Pepper was already standing and heading to the door, stepping over the pieces. "Don't go, alright? Pepper?"  
  
"I'm going to sleep downstairs. Tinker with that." Pepper brushed past me with the same lacking glance and out of sight. I turned back to Tony fighting off his panic attack, sitting down beside him and offering an open palm. He looked at me, only just realising I was there, and took it, squeezing gently as he tried to get his breathing back under control. It took about a full minute for his breathing to completely even out  
  
"You couldn't sleep either?" I shook my head. Tony sighed, rubbing his face with his free hand. "You shouldn't have to live with this. You take after me."  
  
"I get it from being in New York, dad. Don't blame yourself." I rested my head on his shoulder, tentatively. He didn't seem jumpy enough to flinch at the touch. I was glad. He kissed my head.  
  
"You're too good to me."  
  
"You're not good enough to yourself."  
  
"Something else you seem to take after me."  
  
"Shut up, Tony."  
  
 **The next day -** **02:37pm**  
Happy was in the hospital. An explosion at the Chinese Theatre had put Happy Hogan in hospital. At first, I assumed it was a joke because who the hell could hurt  _Happy Hogan_ , but after a very serious drag of my arm out the door and into the back of Tony's car by my father, it was clear it was a pretty serious claim. That's how I ended up sitting in a highly uncomfortable armchair, crutch across my lap, trying not to go into a panic attack at the sight of Happy basically half alive in front of me, and instead try to keep my mind on the show on the TV. My concentration was broken when the nurse came in, checking his vitals and IV line.  
  
"Hi." Tony caught her attention before she could change the TV channel. "Uh... mind leaving that on?" Tony stood and I stood with him, dropping the hand of his I'd been holding the time we were here.  
  
"Sure." The nurse put the remote back down.  
  
"Sunday night's PBS _'Downtown Abbey'_. That's his show, he thinks it's elegant." Tony smiled politely and I smiled. I liked how Tony knew little things about everyone, whether or not it was known to him, he did it with me sometimes and also Pepper a few times too. "One more thing - make sure everyone wears their badges. He's a stickler for that sort of thing, plus my guys won't let anyone in without them." Tony turned to leave and I followed behind him, giving Happy one last glance before following close behind dad. When we arrived earlier, there had been reporters all around the entrance after the media caught wind of the bombing, and I could hear the chatter and camera shutters before we'd even got to the front door.  
  
 _"We're awaiting the arrival of Tony Stark and Alexandra Callaway. We're hoping he'll give us the reaction- their reaction to the latest attack."_ A female's voice could be heard from this close to the door as we exited the hospital. _"_ _Mr_ _Stark! Mr Stark! Miss Callaway! Our sources are telling us that this is another Mandarin attack. Anything else you can tell us?"_ Reporters swarmed towards us.I gripped my crutch and swallowed, feeling suddenly claustrophobic as so many people around me were shouting mine and my dad's name. The flashes in my eyes didn't help, and my chest suddenly felt tight. I made my way through the crowd and a little less than threw myself into the back of the limo, shutting the door quickly before trying to slow down my breathing, holding my hands close to my chest as I panted. I swallowed, shaking my head and sitting straight against the seat, breathing deeply and telling myself to calm down because fuck panic attacks.  
  
 _"Is that what you want? Here's a little Holiday greeting I've been wanting to send to the Mandarin."_  I focussed on my father's voice outside the car.  _"I just didn't know how to phrase it until now. My name is Tony Stark and I'm not afraid of you. I know you're a coward, so I've decided that you just died, pal. I'm gonna come to get the body. There's no politics here; it's just good old-fashioned revenge. There's no Pentagon; it's just you and me."_ Maybe focussing on his voice wasn't the best idea. But my breathing was calming. " _And on the off-chance you're a man, here's my home address: 10880, Malibu Port, 90265. I'll leave the door unlocked."_ Tony grabbed the reporter's phone and tossed it against the wall, smashing it. "Bill me." Tony slid into the driver's seat and began to drive off. "You alright, kiddo?"  
  
"Yeah." I nodded, breathing calmed again and leaning back. "Yeah." I ignored the oncoming headache I was sure to suffer, looking out of the window at the passing landscape as we headed home. "I'm fine."  
  
  
 **3rd Person POV - 2 hours later**  
 _ **"I've compiled a Mandarin database for you, sir. Drawn from S.H.I.E.L.D., F.B.I., and C.I.A. intercepts. Initiating virtual crime scene reconstruction."**_ Blue hologram outlines of the Chinese Theatre formed on the platform in the lab, recreating a realistic structure of everything known about the crime scene by reports.  
  
"Okay, what do we got here?" Tony sat on a workbench, looking over the scan.  
  
"His name is an ancient Chinese war mantle, meaning  _"adviser to the King"_." Alex walked in with her crutch, wearing jeans -somehow- and a shirt and jacket as she approached her father.  
  
"Oh, hell no. Out. Out. You're supposed to be packing your bags to go to your mothers." Tony pointed and clicked at the stairs as if trying to get the attention of a puppy. Alex ignored him and walked further towards the hologram.  
  
"South American insurgency tactics, talks like a Baptist preacher." The younger mechanic stepped up onto the platform, overlooking the hologram model. "Happy is my friend too." She said in her father's direction before turning her attention to the scan before her.  
  
 _ **"The heat from the blast was in excess of 3000 degrees Celsius. Any subjects within 12.5 yards were vaporized instantly."**_ JARVIS continued to explain as both Stark's studied the digital construction.  
  
"No bomb parts found in a three-mile radius of the Chinese Theater?"  
  
 _ **"No, sir."**_  
  
"Talk to me, Happy." More of the construction filled itself in, detailing Happy's body lying on the floor, battered with one arm out. The hologram tracked his eye line and hand direction, crossing them to something small on a chain.  
  
Alex walked through the hologram to the items, marking out a square and putting down the crutch before using both hands to drag the square out of the reconstruction. Alex realised they were a set of dog tags but couldn't quite make out the writing on them.  
  
"Send those over?" Tony asked and Alex flicked her wrist, sending the square over to her father who enhanced the image to be able to see the name 'TAGGART, JACK' with anything else too damaged to make out. "Any military victims, J?"  
  
 ** _"Not according to public records, sir."_**  
  
"Bring up the thermogenic signatures again, factor in three thousand degrees," Alex ordered softly. The diagram changed to a map of America, showing a few bars of thermogenic ratings in different parts of the map, some similar, some a little different.  
  
 ** _"The Oracle Cloud has completed analysis. Accessing satellites and plotting the last twelve months of thermogenic occurrence now."_**  
  
"Take away everywhere that there's been a Mandarin attack." Tony swiped his hand and a number of the bars disappeared from the map, leaving only a few with small descriptions of town names remaining. The two compared the names with the dog tags.  
  
"That one." Alex gestured to the one labelled  _'Rose Hill_ _Tennessee_ _'._  "Are you sure that's not one of his?"  
  
 ** _"It predates any known Mandarin attack. The incident was the use of a bomb to assist a suicide."_** The information spread out to show a military member 'Chad Davis' with TV and paper reports.  _ **"The heat signature is remarkably similar. Three thousand degrees Celsius."**_  
  
"That's two military guys." Tony crossed his arms. "Ever been to Tennessee, JARVIS?"  
  
 ** _"Creating a flight plan for Tennessee."_** JARVIS bleeped back obediently. Tony swept his arms outwards, the entire hologram disappearing and clearing his view to turn to Alex.  
  
"Right. You. Off to your mothers." He jumped off the table.  
  
"Daaaaaad."  
  
"Alex, come on, I threatened a terrorist. I'm not leaving you in harm's way."  
  
"I've been in harm's way since the press first discovered I was your daughter." I raised an eyebrow. Tony gave me the same look back. I hated to admit he had a point, and with my leg, I wasn't too much help in this scenario. "Call me if anything happens.  _Anything_."   
  
"Done." Pulling me close, he kissed my temple before giving a gentle shove towards the door. "Mom's. Now."


	25. Open door

**Alex's POV - 3 hours later**  
It was much quieter around here. The neighbours weren't the nosy type, thankfully, and so we didn't have to bother with the press. Especially considering I didn't tell them my mother's home address.  
  
 _*Ahem* Shade thrown at my own father *Ahem*_  
  
Tossing my backpack over my shoulder and wheeling my suitcase up to the step, I hobbled up the pathway and pressed the doorbell, hearing the muffled buzzing from inside seconds before I was attacked by a hugging bear.  
  
"Oh, thank god you're alright." Never mind, not a hugging bear, just a very, very concerned mother.  
  
"I'm fine, mom. I promise." I patted her on the back in the hug as I stepped into the house, wiping my feet on the mat as I kicked the door shut behind me and managed to pry myself from her tight hold. "Well, not completely fine, of course." I nodded to my leg with a chuckle, the crutch currently resting on top of my suitcase.   
  
"I can't let you out of my sight for five minutes, can I?" The cardigan wearing woman shook her head with a sigh, rubbing her eyes.  
  
"Don't start. Dad's been like that for the last few weeks and it's driving me nuts." I put my hand on the wall to balance myself. "Or, well, more nuts, I suppose." She chuckled.  
  
"How did it happen?"  
  
"Long story." I hoped to avoid the inevitable giggling that would escape her mouth should I tell her I slipped because I was scared of a penny-size spider. Maybe I'd tell her later if she was feeling down, give her something to laugh about.  
  
"You always say that."  
  
"You haven't rented out my room yet, have you?" I tried to move us on.  
  
"Its the same as its always been, Alex." Her smile warmed me as it always would. I was suddenly much happier to be back here. "I'll help you upstairs." She grabbed my suitcase and made a move for my backpack.  
  
"But moooom, I can handle it." I angled myself so she couldn't get to the strap over my shoulder.  
  
"You've got a broken leg and a backpack and I haven't seen you in three months. Let me look after my baby for a little, would you?" She pouted at me.  
  
"Moooom. I'm twenty-five."  
  
"I don't care whether you're twenty-five or sixty. You're always going to be my baby, so the quicker you realise that you cannot win any sort of argument with me is the quicker we can move on, now come." The brunette smiled sweetly before heading to the stairs with my suitcase and backpack. I groaned, picking up my crutch properly and walking behind her, sighing as I realised we didn't live in a bungalow, and like every other normal house in existence, the bedrooms were upstairs.  
  
After managing to get myself upstairs without much hassle, mom opened the door to my bedroom, dropping my suitcase and backpack down to the side.  
"I swear to you I haven't touched anything." She held up her hands as I stumbled inside and looked around. I could already distinctly tell by the light scent of jasmine that that last sentence was a lie. The room wasn't as expansive as at Tony's, nowhere near, but it was big enough for me. A double bed pushed up against the far right corner, a desk beside it with a window above it to look out into the street, and a rug with luminous green lines scribbling over a black background that my mother had almost thrown a fit over me wanting. Beside the door were shelves filled with multiple different books from various college and university courses as well as mechanics manuals and a few random fantasy books. And a shit ton of notebooks, both used and unused.   
  
"Want to watch a film after dinner?" Mom proposed and I nodded with a smile.  
  
"Sounds good. Can I help at all?"  
  
"I've got it sorted. Just unpack your things and I'll call you down later." She crossed her arms, dark blue cardigan sleeves tugging around her. "Try not to break the other one on the way down the stairs."   
  
"Ha, ha. You're hilarious."  
  
"Yes, I am." Mom smiled proudly before kissing my cheek. "Dinner won't be long."  
  
"Okay." I smiled before she headed out and down the stairs, closing my door after her but not to the point of the door clicking.  
  
Why do parents always do that?  
  
 **The next day - 8:30pm**  
I wiped my wet cheek for the third time, sniffing and cuddling further into my covers. The clock on the bedside table showed a blurry 8:30pm and I turned myself away to face the wall instead.  
  
After dinner and sticking on a movie, mom and I had both lost interest around halfway through and ended skipping through TV channels to find something interesting.  
  
Well, we found something.  
  
 _"After what appears to be an attack from the Mandarin, Tony Stark's home in Malibu was completely destroyed in a bombing."_ The news anchor's voice made both mom and me pause, her thumb over the channel changer stopping. Images of the house I had been in just yesterday completely torn apart flashed onscreen as a helicopter flew over to record.  _"In this mess of chaos, sources say that the only survivor recorded in this event is a Miss Virginia 'Pepper' Potts. Stark's body has not been recovered and everyone can only assume at this point that the billionaire genius was caught in the blast and buried beneath the rubble."_ My heart stopped. I didn't blink. _"If this man is still alive, we hope he shows his face again soon as the Mandarin attacks are becoming increasingly more serious and we need Iron Man to defend us. More on the story when we find out--"_  
  
The TV was muted.  
  
The tagline still read:  _ **"Tony Stark is dead."**_  
  
Sniffing again, I curled my legs, both the broken and unbroken one, up to myself, trying to ignore my headache and throat ache as I processed the information. My father was dead. Tony Stark was dead. Dad was dead. Dead. Dead. Fucking dead.   
  
My phone buzzed on the table beside me. I ignored it.  
  
It buzzed a second time. I ignored it again.  
  
The third time it buzzed, an electronic voice spoke out.  
  
 **"Message to all secure Stark Industries Receivers. Play message?"**  
  
 _All Stark Induistries receivers? Why Stark Industries?_  
  
"Play message." I gave the command, staring confused at the wall in front of me.  
  
 **"Playing message..."**  
  
 _"Alex, it's me."_ I shot up from the bed at the familiar voice.  _"I'm not dead. Surprise. I've got a lot of apologies to make and not a lot of time."_  I looked at the phone on the side, heart stopping.  _"So first off, I'm so sorry I put you and Pepper in harm's way. That was selfish and stupid and it won't happen again. Especially considering you were trying to help me and I just sent you off to your mothers, but you see it was better than you stuck here with a broken leg, right? You better still be wearing that brace."_ I stared at the phone, heart beating fast and with a building urge to punch something.  _"Also, it's Christmas time, so I hope your mom's put up the tree and you've been baking gingerbread... or at least trying to bake gingerbread. Let's hope it doesn't smell like a bakery burned down in there until New Years, huh?"_ He chuckled softly. I pulled my legs up, sitting against the headboard with a much less humoured expression.  _"And I'm sorry in advance because... I can't come home yet."_ I glared at the phone. Of course, he can't. _"I need to find this guy. You've gotta stay safe. That's all I know."_ There were shuffling noises in the background.  _"I just stole a poncho from a wooden Indian in Tenessee."_ He seemed to say out loud instead of in his head, and I didn't want to even begin to picture that setting.  _"But I'll be fine. You know me. I'll contact you as soon as I get the suit back up and running. I love you."_  
  
"Tony..." I reached for my phone as the message ended, but then I reminded myself that it was only a message. I picked up the phone and held it in my hands in my lap, watching the screen fade to black as I didn't interact with it again. I turned my phone on and replayed the message, just listening to the sound of his voice and his promise to be fine. It comforted me more than I could describe in words. I had him, lost him, and now have him again in the space of a few hours. It hurt. And it also really made me want to punch him in the face.  
  
He'd better make it back alive so I can kill him myself.


	26. Christmas

**Alex's POV - The next day - 08:27pm**  
I electrocuted myself for the third time in ten minutes. I was honestly surprised I had yet to die from a cardiac arrest brought on by being routinely electrocuted when working on projects.  
  
My work at my bedroom desk was interrupted by my phone ringing. There was no caller ID but I didn't need it, it just answered itself instead.  
  
 _"Oh god, what am I gonna do?"_ A familiar breathless voice came out from the other end of the phone and I picked it off the desk quickly.  
  
"Tony?  _Tony_?" I called out to the sound of his voice. It didn't sound like he was at a phone, but instead in the distance.  
  
 _"I- I can't."_  I knew that breathing pattern. Or lack thereof. He was having a panic attack.  
  
"Tony, it's me okay? You can hear me. Just listen to my voice, okay?" I didn't know how the call had been patched through if he was far away from the receiver.  
  
 _"Who's that?"_ A voice I didn't recognise, sounding like a young child, asked. Since when was I on a conference call?  
  
 ** _"Miss Alexandra Callaway Stark."_** Aaaaand the answer to my question was JARVIS.  
  
"Breathe, Tony. That's all you have to do. Just breathe, and focus on my voice." I continued to talk as I heard his breathing, it was stuttery and choked. I hated the fact I couldn't see him. I couldn't see his face, I couldn't see what was going on. All I had to rely on was that he could hear me and listen to me.  
  
 _"You're a mechanic, right?"_ The earlier voice returned.  
  
 _"Yeah."_ Tony was still panting.  
  
 _"You said so, right?"  
  
"Yes, I did."  
  
"Then why don't you just build something?"_I heard his breathing stop.  There was a long pause. I felt my own heart stutter in dread. Then the sound of snow moving beneath boots and breathing again.  
  
 _"Okay."_ I breathed a breath I didn't realise I was holding at the return of his voice.  _"Thanks, kid."_ There was a beeping noise, and then the sound of a car door and seatbelt buckle.  _"Alex, I promise, I am gonna make this up to you when I get back."_  
  
"Oh, no, no, no, no. You are  _not_ sending me away on that note after the shit you pulled in the last two days. You were alive, then you were dead, then you were alive again making wisecracks about gingerbread men and trees." I rushed out, my fear quickly replaced with annoyance as my brain registered he was no longer in danger. "I swear, you better make it back here alive so I can kill you myself, dad."  
  
 _"Alright, cool. Someone could be tracking this. Love you, Kiddo."_  The line cut off and I pulled the phone away from my ear, eyes half-lidded and lips pressed into a thin line, looking at the black phone screen.  
  
"I hate you."  
  
  
 **Two days later - Christmas Morning - 7:34am**  
Getting down the stairs was always a fun experience with a bad leg. But by now, it felt alright to walk on without the brace, but I still used the crutch to help ease down the steps and head towards the living room. The light sound of Christmas music and the smell of hot chocolate was definitely a homey feeling as I stumbled my way into the living room, and then froze.  
  
Someone was stood by the tree. And it wasn't Santa.  
  
"Hey, kiddo." Tony smiled softly at me, his face looking like he'd been in a long fight. I blinked, before waddling my way over to in front of him.  
  
 _ **Smack.**_  
  
"Agh." Tony winced, rubbing his already pretty bruised up cheek as I shook out my stinging hand, looking at me with a look of mixed confusion and offence. I didn't give him a verbal answer, instead of grabbing his half-burned off jacket with my free hand and yanking him into a hug, burying my face in his shoulder. I could smell the ashes and burnt cinders in the material as I tried to calm myself down. Tony wrapped his arms around me and held me close. "I missed you too." He rested his cheek on my head and I relaxed. It was fine. It was him. He was okay.  
  
Holding him close for as long as it took me to convince my brain he was real, I soon let him go and took a step back, leaning on my crutch.  
"Hey Pepper." I smiled at her and she smiled back. She dressed not as I would usually see her, an oversized shirt and leggings with slightly singed hair. "You both look like you've been through hell." I chuckled softly and the two seemed to smile tiredly at one another and me. I realised now probably was too early for talking about it. "It's fine. I'm sure I'll hear all about it on the TV this morning. Speaking of which..." I leaned down to under the tree, picking up two different packages. I passed the smaller box with a red bow to Tony. "This is yours." I put it in his hands before passing the more material feeling one to Pepper, a similar bow tied slightly unevenly over the present. "And yours." Tony's gift was a watch I had designed myself. It automatically told the time of whatever time zone you were in, measured heart rate and reminded you when you've forgotten to  _eat_ or maybe  _go to bed._  It also measured alcohol levels in the system and worked as a communicator. Pepper's gift was a scarf she had been admiring once when they went shopping together because Potts refused to let me wear the shirts that had holes in them from years of wear.   
  
"Thank you. It's very nice." She kissed my temple and I smiled.  
  
"Anyone else for hot chocolate because I need something to steady my nerves?" Mom's voice from behind accompanied the cardigan-wearing woman and a tray of four mugs, setting it down on the coffee table and picking up the plain black porcelain one. I sighed out a long breath before picking up the one with ' ** _#1 daughter'_** across the outside. Pepper reached for the more rounded mug while dad picked up the  ** _'My dad is a superhero'_** mug and sipping.  
  
"At least this is all over now." I sat down on the arm of the sofa, regardless of how many times mom had told me not to. But it was Christmas, so she was letting it slide.  
  
"Not exactly." The mechanic stopped me halfway to my sip. My eyes flicked in his direction, mouth parted as I paused in my sipping attempt. "I need your help with something. Well, actually, two things." Tony tapped his fingers on the outside of his mug as I blinked at him, silently.  
  
"I've  _just_ sat down."  
  
  
Turns out the important things were the fact that Pepper had something called Extremis in the blood, which after dad showed me experimentation videos of, I decided that yes, I should probably help engineer a solution for this. It took some tinkering, but we eventually got her sorted out and safe.  
  
Then came the issue when was Tony didn't want to just stop there. I was sure a lot of people would have called him crazy for what he wanted, but I bet none of those idiots ever had to live with a chest full of shrapnel for years. So, after a lot of research, and a lot of persuasion of the right doctors and surgeons, I stood by Pepper and Rhodes as Tony went under for the procedure, watching as the little shrapnel pieces were removed and held by a large electromagnet above his unconscious body. He said it was the best sleep he'd had in years.  
  
Since the Malibu home got destroyed, it wasn't as if Tony had nowhere to stay. He had homes all over the globe, but the one he moved us all into for the time being was the Avenger's Headquarters building that he had been working on since the miro destruction of STARK Tower a while before. I'm proud to say I had some help in the design and had my own custom room not far from the lab. And so, after we had all moved in, although Pepper was mainly away a lot of the time with running STARK Industries and trying to save everything from a complete crash following the Mandarin attacks, everything was going quite smoothly.  
  
For about five months.  
  
  
 **Asgard – Dungeon – Loki's cell**  
"Odin continues to bring me new friends. How thoughtful." Loki peered out of the cell wall at the guards bringing new prisoners to the dungeons before turning to his mother.  
  
"The books I sent, do they not interest you?" Frigga, dressed in her regular garments of blue and silver, walked around the sparse furniture littering Loki's cell. Two tables, one of which held a stack of books he had yet to bother reading, a bed close to the corner of the room with a green and gold covering, and a chair and footstool to sit upon in the centre.   
  
"Is that how I'm to while away eternity, reading?" Loki was not dressed as the other prisoners. He was still recognisable as a prince at first glance of his leather armour and boots.  
  
"I've done everything in my power to make you comfortable, Loki."  
  
"Have you? Does Odin share your concern? Does Thor?" He leant two hands on the table, bent forwards slightly. "It must be so inconvenient them asking after me day and night."  
  
"You know full well it was your actions that brought you here."  
  
"My actions." Loki huffed lightly, standing straight. "I was merely giving truth to the lie that I had been fed my entire life, that I was born to be a king."  
  
"A king? A true king admits his faults."  
  
"The only fault I have is not..." Loki trailed off, stopping himself from discussing the possibility of vulnerability further. He closed his eyes, right hand closing. He could feel the warmth of her palm in his from that night, her soft breath on his chest, her delicate heartbeat in his ears.  
  
"Is not what, Loki?" His mother's tone made his green eyes open again. He dropped his hand to his side but never responded to her question. "What of the lives you took on Earth?"  
  
"A mere handful compared to the number that Odin has taken himself."  
  
"Your father..."  
  
 _"He's not my father!"_  Loki screamed as he turned to Frigga. She wasn't shocked by the outburst, and took a step closer.  
  
"Then am I not your mother?" Her gentle tone hit Loki somewhere inside. He hesitated.  
  
"You're not." He refused to let it show. Frigga smiled nonetheless with tears beginning to form in her eyes.  
  
"Always so perceptive about everyone but yourself." She sighed softly and her son looked away. "Your brother-"  
  
"He's not my brother."  
  
" _Thor_ told me you kidnapped one of Earth's defender's daughters." Frigga looked for his reaction, suspicious of his earlier words. Something passed Loki's expression before he could catch it. "You are in fascination with her."  
  
"Don't you have a Kingdom to attend to?" Loki wasn't meeting her eyes, and she sighed, closing her own for a moment before taking a step towards him and extending her hands with a mother's kindness. Loki reached out to touch her but his hand fell through hers. Only a hologram, Loki watched helplessly at Frigga's image slowly disappeared in a flash of silver and gold. The last person who had cared about him even past his trial was now gone.  
  
And now he was destined for the chopping block.


	27. One reason

**Asgard Throne Room - The following morning**  
Thunder rumbled through the halls of the castle, interrupting the regularly serene and natural weather Asgard would normally see. The King's son stormed through the halls with a similar anger to the storm brewing outside, all guards looking away or pretending to be distracted by something else before Thor turned into the Throne Room and approached Odin.  
  
"You intend to execute him?" He held his hammer in his tight grip, coming to a stop in front of the golden, glittering throne.  
  
"The people call for justice from his crimes," Odin spoke calmly, holding his spear as he sat before his son. "Loki has proved he will never cease in his search for power. You yourself are trying to undo the damage he has done against the realms."  
  
"He still does not deserve the axe." Thor gestured his hammer to outside, a cry of thunder called outside the palace. "Have mercy, Father, for the sake of your son and my brother."  
  
"Loki told me himself he is not my son. He does not see himself as your brother. He does not wish for my help."  
  
"But he needs it." He took a step towards the throne. Odin sat up straight, taking a breath in and out before looking down at his son again.  
  
"Give me a single reason to stay the executioner's hand, and I will listen." Odin offered to his son. Thor took the chance quickly and tried to think of something. Anything. What would be proof of his brother's changeable heart? "One single reason, my boy." The Allfather prompted and Thor finally had an idea.  
  
"Gather the court. I will bring you your reason, Father." Thor left the throne room, cape flowing behind him as he reached one of the many balconies of the palace, thrusting his hammer up to the sky and disappearing in a flash of rainbow streams.  
  
  
Alex walked out of the kitchen with an ice-cream tub in hand. She was much happier with her leg now fully healed up and her dad not fussing over her... okay, not fussing over her half as much as he was before. Dressed in mid-thigh bed shorts and a shirt that declared  _'I woke up like this'_ , she hopped onto a sofa and flicked on the TV, knowing that since she was already so awake at 2am, she wouldn't be going to bed anytime soon. Digging into the strawberry swirl pot, she sat back to watch the film before a rumbling noise from her side confused her as she started at a space of nothing, before rolling off the sofa at the sight of a sudden column of rainbows and barely catching her ice-cream tub as she landed with a thump.  
  
The column of rainbows faded away, leaving the young mechanic staring at the blond god standing there in full Asgardian garb and walking over to her.  
"I require your assistance." He held her close and thrust his hammer up to the ceiling, a flurry of colours surrounding them as Thor guided her back to Asgard, landing in the dead centre of the throne room as the colours cleared to reveal the two. And Alex was still holding her ice-cream.  
  
The entire hall was silent, most feeling confused at their sudden summoning or otherwise in respect for the Allfather's first comment on the stranger now standing in his Throne Room. The Court, the Allfather himself, and now Frigga had gathered together for this moment.  
"I've brought you your reason, my King." Thor stepped away from Alex, leaving her confused as he took a stance paces away from her.  
  
"Uh..." She looked as confused as she felt.  
  
"My son, Thor, promises that you may provide us all some reasoning as to the credibility my adopted son, Loki, as to stay the executioner's hand." Odin's first statement made Alex turn to him, at the sight of him in full Royal garb feeling incredibly underdressed in shorts and a shirt.  
  
"Uh..." Alex's head was spinning a little from the sudden Bifrost travel, having never experienced or known it had existed and most definitely not used to the sensation at all.  
  
"I'm asking if you can make a judgement about Loki so he isn't killed." He leaned forward a little, speaking slightly slower to her.  
  
"Uh..." Alex blinked, ice-cream in her hand melting as slow as the tension in the room. Odin sat back on his throne.  
  
"I was unaware that Midgard was producing inhabitants of below average ability to articulate. If this is the best reason you have, my son..."  
  
"This is Alexandra Callaway of Earth. She is the only daughter of Anthony Stark, a defender of Earth when Loki attacked." Thor explained. Frigga took more attention at the mention of her heritage, eyes studying the girl with curious scrutiny. "She was in a close encounter with Loki for three weeks and helped in the conquest of defeating him in New York."  
  
"I'm sorry, but did he call me 'slow' before?" Alex's brain was - _finally_ \- kicking in and recognising Odin's speech.  
  
"This child is a warrior?"  
  
"Yes, she  _is_ a warrior. And you are?" Alex put her hands on her hips, staring up at the stranger dressed in gold.  
  
"I am Odin. King of Asgard. Protector of the Nine Realms. The Allfather."  
  
"For someone who's supposed to be an 'Allfather' I can say you're pretty shit at it." She huffed.  
  
"You shall address me with more respect in front of the court and keep your insulting tongue silenced," Odin responded quickly, making the mechanic pause in confusion.  
  
"What court?" Alex raised an eyebrow. Odin's eyes drifted away from her slightly, and she followed his eye line, doing a 180 turn to see a row of higher up council members mixed with palace guards staring at the display. "Oh. That court." Again, feeling incredibly underdressed. "Right." The brunette turned back to the Allfather, deciding it was probably better to play nice. "Whoops."  
  
"Returning to my earlier question, my son has brought you here because I asked him for a reason for the executioner not to swing his axe for Loki. Are you able to explain any reason why he should not be killed?" The girl opened her mouth, then faltered for her words. Odin pressed. "Do you believe he deserves this sentence?"  
  
"That's a difficult question to answer." The mechanic rubbed the back of her neck, eyes drifting away.  
  
"Do you believe he has the ability to change?" It wasn't Odin asking this time, but instead his Queen, Frigga. Her eyes had not left the human girl since Thor returned with her, and she could already read something there in the mention of Loki and his assigned sentence to be carried out by the end of the week.  
  
"I don't know." Alex shrugged softly. "Honestly, I don't know why you decided to ask me about this. The guy kidnapped me and forced me to work on the machine that would harness the Tesseract's power and open up a big, weird, shimmering portal in space and let a bunch of aliens unleash hell on my world. Or kill my coworkers if I refused." She gestured to the ceiling as if it would create an illusion like Loki's and show everyone.   
  
"Loki's methods focus on deception and seduction of the senses to hide his true nature."   
  
"Yeah, I kinda figured that out when he started using his Silver Tongue." The mechanic tilted her head to each side. The court was quickly losing interest. "But, he isn't without compassion, I suppose. He did treat me well, he made sure I had food and water, a nice place to sleep. He gave me a book to read when I expressed an interest in reading and even gave me a beautiful dress to take me dancing in... even if it was to get an eyeball to open a safe for Iridium. Sure, he threatened to cut out my tongue when I wouldn't shut up, but what are you going to expect from someone trying to take over an entire planet?" She held up her hand in an 'eh' position, tiredly.  
  
"Is this all--"  
  
"He also saved my life twice." She crossed her arms, silencing the Allfather. No one in the room had expected that sentence. It made Council members and guards alike perk up from where they had been rolling eyes and ignoring her babbling. "I almost fell from the height of a building that should have killed me, and he pulled me up before advising me not to fight on. He could have killed me, but he held himself back. A girl that should mean nothing to him, and yet he didn't leave me to die. Then the second time I nearly died, he caught me with his magic. Though the second time was my fault because I have no sense of balance." She kept her arms crossed over her chest, looking at Odin with confidence. "So, you're asking me to make a life or death judgement when I've barely known him for a month. But, as much as the God of Mischief confuses me, I don't think he deserves to have his head taken off his body."   
  
The Throne Room fell into silence once again, and Alex was beginning to register the weight of her own words and the fact that Loki really was at risk of being executed. Thor had brought her here over anyone else he could have brought before his home throne, having had the discussion of what happened in those three weeks with Loki, although leaving some minor details out. She was supposed to be his last hope, standing before the King, Queen, Prince, and Council of Asgard in shorts and a shirt declaring she woke up like that.  
  
And her ice-cream was now half melted.  
  
"You've given I and the Court a lot to consider. Thank you." Odin bowed his head to the girl and she nodded back, not entirely sure about Asgardian customs when it came to these things.  
  
"As lovely as this has been, can I go home now? It was like 2am when Thor grabbed me." Alex realised she also had no idea how to get home other than the weird rainbow thingy that Thor had yanked her into to get here. She remembered reading about it, the 'Bifrost'.  
  
"It should not take long for the court to reach a verdict, Lady Callaway. You may leave, but I would assume that you would like to stay for the final trial of whom you have spoken for." Odin responded softly and Alex blinked. He was asking her if she wanted to stay? On Asgard? For like, an hour? It would mean she had a chance to see Loki again. Did she want to see Loki again? Would the Council even consider her opinion valid considering she was Midgardian?  
  
"I would like to stay, Allfather." Alex used his title, manners seeming to be remembered since her head wasn't spinning like before. he nodded.  
  
"I will look after her until the trial," Frigga spoke up from the side, her right hand subtly fidgeting with her left. Alex could have sworn she recognised that anxious gesture. "This way," She gestured to one of the corridors leading away from the throne. After a look back to Thor who offered her a reassuring nod, the mechanic followed barefoot after the queen of Asgard and out of the hall. She spooned a bit of her ice-cream into her mouth. It was still okay half-melted.


	28. Trials and... something something

**Asgard's Palace - Awaiting Loki's Trial**  
"Was Loki really about to have his head cut off?"  
  
"A matter of treason and taking over an entire planet did push Odin to try and take more drastic measures. It is not the only mischievous thing he has done in the past." Frigga responded softly to the mechanic as they walked down the carpeted halls of the palace together.  
  
"Do you agree with it?"  
  
"No." Frigga responded quickly but softly. "Same as your own opinion, I don't believe he should face the executioner." She shook her head. "The mantle of King did once fall to him when Odin fell into Odinsleep. And living with his brother twisted his jealousy into more once he became King for that brief time."  
  
"Yeah, I've experienced some of his jealousy. Or at least, I think I have." Alex mumbled gently, eyes drifting to the side.  
  
"How so?"  
  
"I told the Court that he took me dancing one night. He seemed a little hostile when someone tried to kiss my hand or when the man who took my drink looked at me for longer than necessary. He didn't think I noticed but I did." The brunette crossed her arms, "Its probably nothing but it's been on my mind since." They came to a stop in the middle of the corridor.  
  
"I understand." The queen nodded softly at the mechanic. "I want to show you something. Something I think you might be interested in."  
  
"Sure, your majesty." Alex had come to feel trust towards the Queen. She seemed much less verbally threatening than Odin.  
  
"Frigga."  
  
"Frigga," Alex repeated, hoping she was pronouncing it correctly with a nod. "Call me Alex then, please."  
  
Frigga led Alex down a few other corridors, Alex was beginning to lose her sense of direction at the size and maze-like layout of the castle, before standing in front of a set of two clinical white doors, decorated in swirls of gold and the handles ornately designed. Frigga reached forward and twisted the handles, opening the doors to reveal the expansive room to the mechanic.  
  
It was almost like a gigantic living room. A fireplace lighting the atmospheric room in a gentle, warming glow sat to the right side of the room. In front were a set of sofas and armchairs, red velvet adorned with gold accents perfect for reading and relaxing. The carpets were patterned with elaborate designs across the floor, a difference from the outside dull rugs running along the corridors. Then the part that Frigga had been most interested in seeing the reaction of from Alex was to the left side, a large, widespread bookcase with multiple hardback and paperbacks lining the shelves in different sizes, colours, and thicknesses.  
  
Holy. Fucking. Shit. Alex was dead. Definitely dead. But her pulse was still going when she checked her wrist. Apparently not dead.  
  
"Wow." Alex blinked at the room in front of her. Frigga lead the brunette inside before closing the doors behind them for privacy.  
  
"This is Loki's favourite room in the palace aside from his own chambers."  
  
"I can see why." Alex chuckled softly as she walked around the room, the fireplace warm on her mostly bare legs, the carpet soft beneath her feet. She put the ice-cream pot on a coaster on one of the coffee tables in the corner before turning to the expansive bookshelf, running her fingers delicately over the closest shelf. "I couldn't even guess how many books are in here." She walked further down the bookcase before something caught her eye. A familiar cover. Alex selected it and removed it delicately from the shelf, opening the cover to read the same thing she read in the version she had. Or used to have. "This is the same book Loki gave me in those three weeks." She began flicking through the pages.  
  
"It's his favourite." The Queen approached her quietly. "He's read it many a time. I may send it to him should he avoid the executioner today." The last part was muttered softly to herself.  
  
"He didn't mention that. He made it out as if he didn't like it." The mechanic closed the book softly, running a delicate hand over the cover. "Oh, if only I was welcome here for longer. I would make it a mission to read every single one of these books myself. Or at least the ones in either English or German." She'd been brushing up on German since that night. It was good to learn a language but that one kind of stuck out to her since Stuttgart. Alex slid the book back into its original place between a navy and a crimson hardback.  
  
The room suddenly dimmed and fell cold. The fire in the fireplace had burned out, now only two lamps on opposite sides of the room were illuminating the furniture. Frigga turned, strolling over to the fireplace and waving her hand, a shimmer of silver quickly caused a ripple in the fireplace, and the fire was suddenly reignited, the former light and warmth returning to the room.  
  
"That looked like..." Alex's voice made the Queen turn. Alex was staring at the fire but her words drifted off. Frigga smiled, almost proudly. She wasn't surprised that the mechanic recognised the action as similar to Loki's. He had always taken after Frigga more often than Odin.  
  
"Something I was able to teach him as his mother was his ability to use magic. Odd, for a Frost Giant, but he was always gifted." Frigga gently seated herself on one of the velvet sofas by the fireplace, the warm glow on her features almost entrancing. "It was usually used for mischief but it was something that made him happy to know, and it brought us closer together in the times he needed it most." Frigga's eyes drifted away from Alex as she spoke, and the girl quietly approached her.  
  
"I uh... I had a panic attack one night in my room following a nightmare." She sat on the other end of the sofa, folding one leg under herself with the other resting off the edge. "He stayed with me and calmed me down, even going so far as to give me a personal light show of these green and gold swirls on the ceiling, keeping by my side until I felt alright enough to fall asleep again." Alex played with one of the sting son her bed shorts, looking down. Frigga tilted her head, listening. "Then managed to catch me with a magic net or something the second time I nearly died. Materialised it under me before I hit the ground." She tied the strings into a bow before undoing it again and looking at the Queen. "For a guy that usually denied the fact that he liked me, his actions tended to contradict that."  
  
"Always his fatal flaw. So perceptive about everyone around him except himself." Frigga nodded gently before looking at the young girl "He is in fascination with you. And he is scared of that. I wasn't sure if it was true or just the ideas of a sentimental mother until I saw you in the throne room."  
  
"Probably because I talked back to him more often than not."  
  
"Whatever the case between the both of you, you have left some impression on him." A knock sounded at the door to the library. "Let us hope it is not in vain." Frigga nodded before calling out to the door to enter. A guard in full Asgardian armour walked in on command.  
  
"My Queen, Lady Callaway, you are wanted back in the Throne Room. The Court has made a decision."  
  
"Thank you." Frigga dismissed the guard and he disappeared, closing the doors behind him,  
  
"Yay," Alex said with lacking enthusiasm as she stood, grabbing her ice-cream that was now completely melted.  
  
"I always feel the same." The Queen chuckled softly, standing too.  
  
"Oh boy. Can't wait to see them all again in my night clothes." Alex looked down at herself, tugging on the short toggles. Frigga hummed softly, looking at her appearance, understanding the discomfort she might find being so underdressed in the palace.  
  
"Follow me. We may make a single stop before the court."  
  
  
 **Throne Room - Loki's Trial**  
The rattle of chains followed Loki's every step in approaching the throne, coming to a stop with a tired look on his face.  
"I really don't see what all the fuss is about." It was only Odin before him, Frigga and Alex had not yet returned. But Odin did not have the patience to wait.  
  
"A new development in your previous trial has come to light, Loki." Odin sat straight, hand gripping his spear. "A trial that started all because Loki desires a throne."  
  
"It is my birthright."  
  
"Your birthright was to  _die_!" Odin snapped. "As a child. Cast out onto a frozen rock. If I had not taken you in you would not be here now to hate me."  
  
"If I am for the axe, then for mercy's sake, just swing it. It's not that I don't love our little talks, it's just... I don't love them." Loki sighed, closing his eyes for longer than a blink before reopening them to his father. Approaching footsteps echoed gently from the side of the hall.  
  
"Your brother brought a visitor from Midgard to my palace to defend your case." Odin turned his head to watch as his wife, followed by Alex with a lowered head in a flowy forest green dress that reached the floor, cinched in around the waist and tied around the back of her neck to expose her shoulders, and they stood on the steps leading to the throne. "Lady Callaway here has made an argument against the sentence set for you." Alex raised her head to the guards and prisoner. Blue eyes locked with green.  
  
 _"Songbird."_  It slipped out before he could stop it. A gentle whisper in the silent, echoing hall. A break in his uncaring speech.  
  
"You will instead, as the Court has decided, spend the rest of your days in the dungeons. Alone." Odin continued to speak, but Loki was still staring at Alex, and her, in turn, staring back at him. The air felt electric for a single moment, despite Thor's lack of presence, before Loki tore himself away from her gaze and to his adoptive father.  
  
"And what of Thor? You'll make that witless oaf king while I rot in chains?"  
  
"Thor must strive to undo the damage you have done. He will bring order to the nine realms and then, yes. He will be king." Odin nodded to his son. Loki couldn't have looked any more disgusted. "Guards, take him back to his cell where he will spend the rest of eternity." As he was dragged away, the two dressed in green looked at each other before Loki disappeared completely behind a corner and the sounds of chains and footsteps slowly grew further away before disappearing completely. "Leave me, the Lady, and my Queen, alone." Any remaining guards quickly dispersed out of the room, leaving the three alone.  
  
"The Court was influenced by your speech. Perhaps Loki hasn't quite lost all hope and compassion just yet." The Allfather stood out of his seat, approaching the Midgardian. "I assume you will want to return to Midgard now?" He set his spear down. Alex glanced back to the last place she saw the Prince, before biting her lip and looking back to the god.  
  
"I'm not sure how things work with prisoners and stuff up here but... am I allowed to give Loki a gift before I leave?" She asked in an almost timid tone. Odin stared at her for a second.  
  
"It is... an odd request, but after inspection, I may allow it." He acquiesced. Alex nodded.  
  
"I need Thor to go get me something."  
  
  
 **Loki's cell**  
A guard approached the cell, bypassing the wall and putting down the items in his hand onto a table before bowing his head and leaving Loki alone. The Prince perked up from where he had been laying on his bed, stopping throwing the small metal piece of his suit up into the air to glance at the table.  
  
Standing, he strolled over to the table, picking up the first item he instantly recognised as his favourite book to read on Midgard. His mother must have found it and sent it ahead for him. He shook his head softly and put it to the side. The second was also a book, but not one he instantly recognised. Furrowing his brow, he picked up the smaller, A5 book, a little worn around the edges with a few pen marks on the cover but otherwise well kept in good condition. Loki flicked open the first page to read the greeting message.  
  
 _`The random scribblings of 'The Intern'  
Anyone else but me: _ _piss_ _off and get a life.`_  
  
A smirk tugged at the side of his mouth. It was the notebook. Her notebook. Songbird's very own notebook. She had given it to him as a gift.  
  
Loki began skimming the pages, noticing there was a lot more in there than he originally knew of. It seemed she had continued using it after those weeks in New York. And she had left it there for him.  
  
He started to read with a smile.


	29. A line

**Asgard's Palace**  
I should have gone home when I first had the chance. When Thor had returned, he had returned with Jane Foster. And that's when things went to hell. I was supposed to wait for Thor to take me home because he was basically my ride, but before long spent with Frigga after Loki's trial and Thor being summoned away with Jane to the medical rooms, did things begin to take the turn for the worse.  
  
Odin had rushed I, Frigga, and Jane together to Frigga's quarters to wait for the 'skirmish' as Odin had named it, to be over. Unsurprisingly, it took less than a few minutes for the doors of the chamber to open and yet another thing I had only seen similar to those in a sci-fi movie or video game stroll in through the doorway in black robes and armour, features such as the pointed ears and eyes representing an elf-like creature.  
  
"Stand down, creature. You may still survive this." I and Jane moved back to the safety of a pillar as Frigga stood, her blade held firm in one hand.   
  
"I have survived worse, woman." The thing even sounded other-worldly. Pale skin and markings around the eyes and mouth. If I die right now, for the record, I blame Thor for this for dragging me into this shit.  
  
"Who are you?" The Queen demanded.  
  
"I am Malekith, and I would have what it is mine." The being approached Frigga, and she struck him across the face with her blade. He unsheathed a similar one and returned the attack. I grabbed Jane's arm and dragged her away from the two fighting and to a concealed corner. A stranger stomped into the room, a large brutish figure with the face of a monster, who grabbed Frigga and made her drop her blade. Malekith looked around the room, finding an image of Jane that wasn't the one I was still holding onto. "You have taken something, child. Give it back."He reached to grab her before the illusion dissipated and he turned on Frigga. "Witch! Where is the Aether?"  
  
"I'll never tell." Frigga struggled in the monster's arms.  
  
"I believe you."  
  
Her scream of pain accompanied the monster stabbing her through the back at the same time Thor burst through the open doors, sending a lightning bolt thundering into Malekith's face, scarring it. The elf and whatever the hell that massive thing following him was escaped out of a window and onto a ship before Thor could catch them. Odin was the next to burst through the open doors and freeze upon the sight of the Queen laying motionless on the steps.  
  
The god stumbled over, kneeling and holding her lifeless body in his arms, beginning to mourn as Thor, Jane, and myself gathered around. I felt a stab in my chest.  
  
I was allowed to stay for the funeral. Asgardians had gathered at the edge of the waterfall that marked Asgards end to mourn equally for her, releasing glowing orbs of light into the air as the boat holding her decorated body was pushed out onto the water. The lights shone above in the sky before an archer shot a flaming arrow into the boat, alighting it with an orange flame that slowly grew further and further away before disappearing off the edge.   
  
The room I was given for the night was big and luxurious, and two guards stood outside to 'protect' me.  I didn't sleep very easily and was awoken by the doors to the room being knocked on a few moments before Thor walked in, wearing a plain black cloak and a look of vengeance.  
"I'm sorry to ask of you further, but I still need your help." He didn't look like he would take no for an answer, not that I would really say 'no' after everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. I followed him, still in this green flowy Asgardian dress, to head downstairs. I'd never been downstairs in the palace, just along the corridors. So when I was guided down the steps, I should have expected to see the dungeon, and the only prisoner left in his cell.  
  
  
"Thor, after all this time and now you come to visit me." Loki, dressed in his usual robes strode around his cell before stopping in front of Thor. I hung back. "Why?" He glared and leant forward. "Have you come to gloat? To  _mock_?"  
  
"Loki, enough. No more illusions." Thor sighed at his brother. In an instant, the cell transformed, the illusion lifting to reveal the cell was a mess, everything looking to have been thrown around in a rage, and now he was sat on the floor, looking unkempt and messy, no longer in his usual robes or with his hair slicked back.  
  
"Now you see me, brother." His voice was much less confident, and instead much more tired. Thor walked up to the other side of the cell to be closer. "Did she suffer?"  
  
"I did not come here to share our grief. Instead, I offer you the chance of a far richer sacrament." Thor stopped by his side, only the wall separating them.  
  
"Go on."  
  
"I know you seek vengeance as much as I do." His brother continued. I slowly walked towards the two. "You help me escape Asgard and I will grant it to you, vengeance. And afterwards, this cell." Loki chuckled.  
  
"You must be truly desperate to come to me for help. What makes you think you can trust me?"  
  
"I don't. Mother did. You should know that when we fought each other in the past, I did so with a glimmer of hope that my brother was still in there somewhere. That hope no longer exists to protect you. You betray me and I will kill you." Thor told him, even though he had spent the last day trying to avoid someone else doing that to him. Loki smiled as he noticed me standing there.  
  
"And you? The Midgardian who saved my neck from the axe?"  
  
"Let's call it even for what happened in New York." I crossed my arms.  
  
"I recall having saved your life twice."  
  
"Let's agree to disagree."  
  
"This would mean you are still indebted to me one more time." He smirked.  
  
"Okay, the first time I could have done it myself without your help. I was just on the edge of the building. Plus you held me captive for three weeks before that so that kind of negates the selflessness of the act." I shrugged back, arms still crossed. Loki sat back against the wall, seeming to consider it.  
  
"Hmm. When do we start?"  
  
  
  
Sneaking back upstairs with the god of mischief was a bit of a struggle. But at least Loki had been given his proper robes back and done something with his hair, probably using his magic. I didn't use to take him as a narcissist, and I didn't necessarily think he looked totally bad with his hair not gelled back, but there was no time to think on it while turning traitor within the first twenty-four hours of being in another world's kingdom.  
  
"This is so unlike you, brother. So clandestine. Are you sure you wouldn't rather just punch your way out?" Loki somehow seemed excited by the whole thing. It was almost nice to see him smiling in such a tense situation.  
  
"If you keep speaking I just might." Thor looked over his shoulder for guards.  
  
"Fine. As you wish. I'm not even here." Suddenly, there was a guard standing next to me instead of a Loki. "Is this better?" The voice didn't change, however.  
  
"It's better company at least." Thor huffed as we walked.  
  
"Still, we could be less conspicuous." Loki turned back into himself in a flash, but something else changed. "Hm, brother. You look ravishing." I glanced to Thor who was now displayed as Lady Sif. Thor looked down at his now female body, unimpressed.   
  
"It will hurt no less when I kill you in this form." It was still Thor's voice who replied. I bit my lip to stop a giggle.  
  
"Very well. Perhaps you prefer one of your new companions, given that you seem to like them so much." The green and gold magic shimmered again, and this time I nearly stumbled as he changed. "Oh, this is much better." Loki looked down at his full Captain America garb. "The costume's a bit much, so tight. But the confidence, I can feel the righteousness surging." Loki even copied Steve's exact voice. It wouldn't have been so funny had it not been very, very accurate. "Hey, you wanna have a rousing discussion about truth, honour, patriotism? God bless Amer–" Thor grabbed a hold of Loki, putting his hand over his mouth and pushing the younger against the wall, causing Loki to drop his illusion and glare. "What?" I glanced to see two Asgardian guards walking away and hid behind a pillar as they walked off. "You could at least furnish me with a weapon. My dagger, something!" Thor looked down, pulling something out of his pocket. "At last, a little common sense." Then the sound of a lock clicking. Loki raised his hands to show iron locking handcuffs on them.   
  
"Oh, I thought you liked tricks." Thor chuckled before walking away from him. I covered my mouth and he turned his eyes to me.  
  
"Don't you laugh at me, Intern," Loki growled as he moved to follow Thor. The sound of the old name only made me want to laugh more as I quickly jogged to catch them. Just in time to see the warriors and Jane approaching the two brothers.  
  
"You're..." Jane walked to them.  
  
"I'm Loki. You may have heard of-" Loki was cut off by Jane slapping him, loudly. I blinked at the tiny science girl.  
  
"That was for New York." She brushed her hair out of her face. Loki chuckled.  
  
"I like her." He grinned towards Thor. I don't know why that made me annoyed, but I brushed it off as just a memory from those three weeks and getting to slap the god myself.  
  
"There they are!" A loud voice from down the hall called out. A few guards had spotted us. "Take them. On my command."  
  
"I'll hold them off. Go." Sif, I think, who had led Jane here, nodded to Thor.  
  
"Thank you." Thor grabbed Jane as I and Loki followed him, but were stopped when Sif placed her blade to Loki's throat. "Betray him and I'll kill you."  
  
"It's good to see you too, Sif." Loki smiled before following Thor and Jane with me.   
  
"I will give you as much time as I can."  
  
"Thank you, my friend." Thor shared a forearm shake with Volstagg before walking to what looked like a crashed alien spaceship in the middle of the hall with a lot of pillars holding up the ceiling. I and Loki went to follow before being stopped.  
  
"If you even think about betraying him..."  
  
"You'll kill me? Evidently, there will be a line." The god smiled before being let past. I felt a smile twitch at the sides of my mouth at his sarcasm before following up the ramp to the ship. Loki turned back to me a few steps before we stepped on. "Are you going to threaten to kill me too if I betray you?" He tilted his head as if he actually believed I would kill him and as if we actually had time for this conversation.   
  
"I can't be bothered waiting in line, to be honest." I started walking into the ship with a hidden smirk. "Hurry up, Lokimotion." I heard his footsteps following behind with a growl.  
  
"That name was not clever in your notebook and it is not clever out loud."


	30. Not for him

**Malekith's ship**  
The four entered the ship in haste, Loki and Thor heading to the controls as Alex held onto a quickly weakening Jane.  
  
Thor, looking confused at the alien ship that had been powered down and incredibly dimly lit inside, began randomly pressing parts of what he assumed was the control panel.  
  
"I thought you said you knew how to fly this thing." Loki, still in his chained handcuffs, raised an eyebrow at his brother.  
  
"I said, 'how hard could it be?'" The elder continued pressing buttons.  
  
"Well, whatever you're doing, brother, I suggest you do it faster."  
  
"Shut up, Loki." Thor began to hit the buttons instead, growing frustrated with the lack of response.  
  
"You must have missed something."  
  
"No, I didn't, I'm pressing every button on this thing."  
  
"No, don't hit it, just press it gently."   
  
"I am pressing it  _gently_. It's not working!" Thro slammed his hands against the panel, the ship finally lighting up with blue magic, a holoscreen appearing around them in a bubble as the panel illuminated in alien symbols. Thor laughed before starting to figure out the controls.  
  
The ship jolted as the engines fired up, the sip beginning to raise and the body below the control room rotating, breaking down many of the decorative columns supposed to be holding the palace ceiling up.   
  
"I think you missed a column."  
  
"Shut up!"  
  
Finally, the ship raised high enough to break through the palace wall, sending pieces from the structure crashing to the floor as the ship took off, flying through Asgard past the royal guards and people below. Thor guided them over the valleys and trees and narrowly missed skimming the ship off of a high rising waterfall.  
"Look, why don't you let me take over? I'm clearly the better pilot," Loki said as the ship turned on an axis again.  
  
"Is that right? Well, out of the two of us which one can actually fly?" Thor responded, trying to keep steady as the ship flew over the rest of the kingdom uneasily.  
  
Alex, who had been trying to keep steady and not vomit from the sudden changes in direction, nearly dropped Jane as she completely collapsed in the mechanic's arms. Alex let her down gently to lie on the floor.  
"Guys?"  
  
"Oh, dear. Is she dead?" Loki didn't sound concerned.  
  
"I'm okay." Jane raised her head just a little, looking weak as the Aether grew stronger within her.  
  
 As the four continued to fly through Asgard, they were jolted again when the wing of the ship sliced through a rather large and important looking structure. Thor grumbled to Loki.   
"Not a word."  
  
Several smaller ships from the Asgardian Guard began flying into the air to follow the strange ship.  
  
"Now they're following us." Loki narrated before the smaller ships began to fire at the back of them, the blue holoscreen rippling with each connection as the ship rumbled in impact. "Now they're firing at us."  
  
"Yes, thank you for the commentary, Loki. It's not at all distracting." The thunder god growled as he again flipped the direction of the craft, much to Alex's dismay, but seemed distracted by Jane on the floor.  
  
"Oh for fuck's sake. I'll drive!" Alex stood, swapping places with Thor as he attended to Jane. "Right. How do I drive this thing?" Alex fumbled around, trying to replicate how Thor had been stood and studying the controls quickly.  
  
"Intern, I don't think this is the best considering your past experiences with flying vehicles--"  
  
"Got it!" Alex swerved them away from the top of the palace, narrowly missing taking the top part off with the wing, but in turn instead breaking a massive stone monument of King Bor, splintering the head to then crumble to the floor of the kingdom.   
  
"Well done, you just decapitated our grandfather." The mischief god sassed.  
  
"I'm sooo fucking sorry, your high-n-ass, for trying to save our lives for like the third time in twenty-four hours." Alex was starting to get the hang of the controls, the symbols she was unused to she began to mentally decode by seeing where they were labelled and on what, ducking the ship out of the way of the Guard ships and sending the smaller vessels crashing into a cliffside.  
  
"You know this is wonderful. This is a tremendous idea." Loki began pacing. "Let's steal the biggest, most obvious ship in the universe and escape in that. Flying around the city, smashing into everything in sight so everyone can see us. It's brilliant, Thor! It's truly brilliant!" Thor suddenly shoved his brother out of the side of the ship. Alex stared at him, wide-eyed, not caring about crashing into anything else at that second. Thor grabbed Jane and noded his head to the opening, to which Alex decided 'fuck it' and leapt out with them.  
  
Not so much a graceful landing as more of a crashing onto the ship below them being flown by Fandral, a silver boat-like vessel with wings on either side of the back end. And not even landing on the ship, but instead on top of Loki.  
"I see your time in the dungeons has made you no less graceful, Loki." Fandral laughed as Alex rubbed the side she landed on top of the mischievous god with and climbed off of him.  
  
"Sorry." She apologised and pulled Loki up to stand, him bending forward slightly in pain as Thor landed on the ship and laid Jane down. Malekith's vessel above them continued to fly in one direction.  
  
"You lied to me. I'm impressed." Loki breathed to his brother.  
  
"I'm glad you're pleased. Now, do as you promised. Take us to your secret pathway." His brother directed and Loki smiled, taking over the ship's control, at the same time more Asgardian ships spotted them all and start firing towards them. "Fandral." Thor nodded.  
  
"Right." The warrior picked up a rope and stepped on the edge of the ship. "For Asgard." He suddenly jumped off the edge, using the rope to swing himself onto the vessel following them to take them down.   
  
Loki guided the four remaining on the ship out past the living areas of Asgard and into the damp rocks and sparse green land before coming up on a rather large, unforgiving looking mountain.  
"Loki..." Alex looked at the god with a slight worry about his sanity.  
  
"If it were easy everyone would do it."  
  
"Are you mad?" Thor demanded.  
  
"Possibly." Loki guided them into the mountain. Alex closed her eyes and winced as the ship flew through the gap, the sides scraping against the jagged edges before a shimmer of gold and the mountain was no longer what surrounded them, but instead a vast field of dirt and darkened skies. The ship bounced on the rocky ground as they reached the other world. "Ta-da!" Loki sung in a sing-song and Alex removed her hands, looking around at what they had not been looking at three seconds before.  
  
"Where are we?"  
  
"Svartalfheim," Loki answered, slowing the ship's rushing pace to a gentle sail as they came up to forgotten piles of metal ships and other objects that were once lost to this trash heap planet.  
  
"You know, I don't know why I ask considering I still have no idea what the fuck is going on even with the explanation." The mechanic rubbed her face. "What is this, like, the second out-of-Earth planet I've been to in the last day or so? I've barely left  _America_ before."  Loki chuckled softly from behind her at her mumbling, and she suddenly felt a little easier at that sound.  
  
Thor placed a blanket over Jane as she laid down on the softly sailing ship and Loki moved from the guidance area. Alex sat herself down by Jane, feeling dizzy from the day.  
"She's strong in ways you'd never even know." Thor sat on one of the side benches on the ship as Loki sat on the other.   
  
"Say goodbye."  
  
"Not this day."  
  
"This day, the next, a hundred years. It's nothing. It's a heartbeat." Loki let his eyes drift to the mechanic who was taken by the strange shapes of forgotten metal before they moved back to Thor. "You'll never be ready. The only woman whose love you've prized will be snatched from you."  
  
"And will that satisfy you?"  
  
"Satisfaction is not in my nature."  
  
"Surrender not in mine." Thor glared back at his brother. Loki chuckled.  
  
"The son of Odin."  
  
"No, not just of Odin!" Thor stood and approached the younger. "You think you alone were loved of mother? You had her tricks, but I had her trust."  
  
"Trust." Loki scoffed. "Was that her last expression? Trust? When you let her  _die_!"  
  
"What help were you in your cell?" The blond stepped closer.  
  
"Who put me there? Who put me there?!" The god of mischief yelled and Thor gave in to rage, grabbing his robe and slamming Loki into the ship side.  
  
"You know damn well! You know damn well who!" Thor drew back his fist, ready to strike his brother. For a moment both Alex and Loki were convinced he would. But then he stopped himself. "She wouldn't want us to fight." He released his grip on the younger god.  
  
"Well, she wouldn't exactly be shocked." Loki shrugged a little, the tension of the moment between the two dissolving when the two brothers started to smile a little. Thor went to speak again.  
  
"I wish I could trust you." The thunder god said softly, looking at Loki for a few moments before he gently turned his back to the frost giant to instead attend to Jane. Loki pushed himself off the side of the ship, looking at the back of his brother and breathing out.  
  
"Trust my rage." Loki returned to the bench he sat on, only a little space away from the Midgardian who had saved his life mere hours ago. He turned to look at her, Alex taking her gaze off of the passing metal and debris to catch his eyes. Loki turned back to sit hunched over his legs, staring instead at his shackles.  
  
  
Jane's eyes opened suddenly, as her body sat up, the Aether now having taken completely over her.   
"Malekith." The red and black eyes stared at Thor, who looked back at his brother and the human girl, before nodding. The three still conscious managed to scrounge a plan as Loki landed the ship behind a small hill of rocks.  
  
"Alright, are you ready?" Thor hoped Jane was still slightly active in her own body. She nodded back. And after an agreeing nod from the mechanic, the four rose from their hiding spot to spy Malakith standing in front of the vessel he had fled with after murdering Frigga with his remaining armoured warriors in the distance.  
  
"You know this plan of yours is going to get us killed," Loki stated.  
  
"Yeah, possibly," Thor responded without much undetermination.   
  
"Thor. Can I borrow a blade?" Alex asked as she nearly tripped on the end of her dress for the fifth time that day. Thor gave her a confused look. "I don't have a weapon if we start fighting with these guys. Does it look like I could hide one in this dress?" She gestured to herself. Thor took a second of hesitation before passing over a small knife, not expecting Alex to begin immediately hacking at the dress around knee height.  
  
"What are you trying to accomplish..?" Loki began as she ripped off anything from her dress below her knee, tossing away the remaining material so she stood in gold boots, looking at him glancing away awkwardly.  
  
"Relax, you prude. I've got shorts on under this."  
  
Loki rolled his eyes and held up his shackled hands for Thor to uncuff him, who did nothing but stare at him.  
"You still don't trust me, brother?"  
  
"Would you?" Thor took off Loki's cuffs and dropped them to the dirt and rock floor.  
  
"No, I wouldn't." Loki unsheathed a dagger from his side, turning and stabbing Thor in the gut before tossing his body down the hill. Jane screamed and rushed down the hill after him, eyes still black and red. Alex turned to Loki.  
  
"You psycho--" Alex was cut off by the dagger on her throat as Loki grasped the back of her neck.  
  
"Finish that sentence, Midgardian." He growled loudly enough for the others to hear before lowering his volume. "Remember, I'm doing this for my mother, not for any of you." He then shoved her to follow Thor, just as 'gracefully' to the side where Jane was kneeling over him. Loki leapt off the rock and followed them down, clutching his dagger.  
  
"You really think I cared about Frigga, about any of you?" He kicked a dizzy Thor in the stomach. "All I ever wanted was you and Odin dead at my feet!" Thor raised his hand, attempting to summon Mjolnir, but Loki grabbed his wrist and cut it off, causing Thor to scream out in pain. Loki grabbed both Jane and Alex,  the mechanic dizzy from hitting her head on a rock, and turned to face Malekith and his dark elves. Malekith, I am Loki of Jotunheim and I bring you a gift!" He threw Jane at Malekith's feet, uncaringly. "I ask only one thing in return, a good seat from which to watch Asgard burn, and to take my prize." He dragged Alex's collar around in gesture. She made a mental note to slap him later for that comment.  
  
Malekith looked to Algrim behind him, who grunted back in the foreign tongue. Malekith then turned back and lifted Jane into the air, floating, and extracted the Aether from within her in a flow of red and black. Jane's tired body quickly fell to the ground.  
  
"Loki, now!" Thor commanded, Loki removed his illusion on Thor's hand to see it reappear, quickly summoning Mjolnir and firing lightning at the Aether attempting to destroy it. Malekith was faster and instead absorbed it, turning to leave on his ship. The dark elves charges at the rest who began to fight against one another, Alex and Loki fighting back to back with similar blades in hand.  
  
Algrim tossed one of his vortex weapons in the air towards Jane, but Loki pushed her away and was nearly sucked in until Alex grabbed his arm and yanked him back to the floor. Algrim quickly beat Thor to the floor as he was attacked, but suddenly stopped as Loki impaled him from behind. Algrim slowly turned around to look at Loki panting, and suddenly pulled Loki into the same blade.  
  
"No!" Alex screamed as she kicked another elf away in time to see Loki slide off the blade and fall to the floor, convulsing.  
  
"See you in hell, monster!" Loki spat back as another version of his own vortex weapon attached to the blade exploded out and he disappeared out of sight. Thor and Alex rushed to Loki's sides as his skin became paler and paler.  
  
"No. No, no, no! Oh, you fool, you didn't listen!" Thor dropped to his side and held him as much as he could.  
  
"I know. I'm a fool. I'm a fool!" Loki squirmed and shook in pain.  
  
"Stay with us, okay? You're gonna be fine, you hear me?" Alex looked at the wound in his chest. It had gone straight through and now bleeding. It was bleeding too much. Loki's ice blue eyes were everywhere else but her. "Loki look at me. Loki." She put one hand under his neck to guide his head to her. "Mischief." She whispered out as he finally looked at her.  
  
"I've not heard that in a while." Loki breathed out shakily with the best smile he could force on his lips. Alex's chest hurt.  
  
"It's okay." Alex held his cool cheek with the gentleness of a feather, feeling a light tremor pass through it. "It's going to be okay." Her voice took on the same softness, almost a plead.  
  
"I'll tell father what you did here today." Thor declared, a hand on Loki's wounded chest. Loki didn't look away from Alex's soft green eyes.  
  
"I didn't do it for him." The shaking in his body faded as he closed his eyes and his body stopped moving. Alex watched as the skin slowly turned grey, feeling her hand on his cheek even colder than normal. Her breathing hitched as she looked at his dead form, quietly resting her head on his bloodied chest as her hand grew slowly colder. She wasn't crying, but she was close to it, feeling her chest tighten for what she felt was an unknown reason. Why was she feeling as affected at this as she was? Similar to Thor who was screaming and crying for his brother's downfall.  
  
Alex breathed unsteadily against Loki's unmoving chest. His Songbird was left alone again.


	31. Weekend

The cave was cold and cramped, as Thor, Jane, and Alex moved into it to escape the storm outside. Loki's body had been left in the dust as the group walked to try and figure out what to do next. Alex sat on a rock as Thor and Jane stayed close together.  
  
"He's gonna unleash it, not just on Asgard or on a star, Malekith is gonna destroy everything." Jane rambled, walking further into the cave.  
  
"How? Jane, how?" Thor caught her arm, spinning her to face him.  
  
"I saw him on Earth. Why would he go to Earth?"  
  
"The Convergence," Thor answered. Jane covered her face with her hands.  
  
"Oh, God. None of this would have happened if I hadn't found the Aether."  
  
"Then Malekith would have only possessed it that much sooner." The Thunder God tried to reassure her.  
  
"I only found it because I was looking for you." The scientist admitted.  
  
"Jane." Thor placed a tender hand on her cheek. Alex tried not to vomit or make a face past an eye roll.  
   
"Now we're trapped here." Jane leaned into the touch until muffled music began to play. The three looked at one another in confusion.  
  
"It's not me," Thor said. Jane slid her phone out of her pocket, answering the ringing tone.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
 _"Hi, Jane, it's Richard."_ Richard's voice came through the other end, confusing Jane and making Thor suspicious.  
  
"Richard?! Where are you?"  
  
 _"I'm still in the office. It's... It's been a crazy day here today."_  Jane put the phone on speaker and held it up as she monitored her phone service. Alex spotted something a little ahead of Jane, standing off the rock and exploring deeper into the cave.  
  
"Oh, my God! This is amazing." Jane continued to ramble as Alex bent down, picking up a set of keys with a coloured Rubix cube keychain, holding it up to Jane.  
  
 _"Am I interrupting something?"_  Richard's voice rung out in the cave as Jane took the keys.  
  
"No, no, no, nothing at all." Jane grabbed Thor's hand, starting to lead the trio further into the cave.  
  
 _"I'm losing you there, are you in a tunnel?"_ Richard continued as Thor stared at Jane, slightly accusingly, as they followed her into the cave.  
  
"Why are there so many shoes in here?" He mumbled at the floor as the three suddenly disappeared through a void opening, landing back in the carpark Jane had been taken from by Thor only a few hours before. Ian's abandoned car stood only a few paces away from them, Jane spotting it and heading over to the driver's seat, taking a few attempts to start the engine before it finally kicked in as Thor entered the passenger seat.  
  
"So who's Richard?"  
  
"Really?" Jane looked at him. Alex knocked on the shattered window.  
  
"Hey, uh, guys?" She caught their attention. "I don't mean to be a downer or anything but what am I supposed to do now? Thor's kind of my ride." She wrapped her arms around herself, the lack of sleeves on the dress making her cold in the wintery air.  
  
"Jump in the car." Jane unlocked the back seat and Alex slid it as it began to rain.  
  
"I'm sorry, but I can't use the Bifrost to take you home now, Miss Callaway," Thor told her.  
  
"Whatever, I'll get the subway then." The mechanic shrugged and sat back in her seat.  
  
"Can you help us with the Aether first, please?" Jane looked back at the billionaire's daughter. The two knew each other in passing. Alex, being on the news all the time, was more recognisable, but she had met Jane at a convention a while back and had gotten to talking for a little. Callaway sighed.  
  
"Sure. Let's save the world a second time." She put her seatbelt on as Jane reversed out of the car park. "My dad is  _so_ gonna kill you, Thor."  
  
  
Getting back to the apartment, Jane was in first, followed by Thor and Alex.   
  
Darcy stood up quickly, rushing to her friend.  
"Jane. You can't just leave like that, the whole world is going crazy!" Darcy rambled. Thor took notice of the coat rack on the wall, handing the leather loop of Mjolnir's handle on a free hook. "All the stuff we saw is spreading." Darcy took notice of Jane's clothes. "Did you go to a party?"  
  
"Erik?" Jane walked further into the apartment as Selvig stood up.  
  
"Jane, how wonderful!" He grinned happily before looking at her dishevelled outfit in recognition. "You've been to Asgard."  
  
"Hey, aren't you Tony Stark's daughter?" Ian Boothby, Darcy's intern, recognised Alex with a curious gaze.  
  
"Okay, my name's Alex, first off." The mechanic was not in the mood, crossing her arms at the bumbling boy.  
  
"Miss Callaway!" Erik recognised, holding out his arms and rounding the table to hug her.  
  
"Dr Selvig... is not wearing pants." Alex looked down as he reached her and embraced her.  
  
"He says it helps him think." Ian supplied helpfully as Erik pulled out of the hug.  
  
"Its good to see you, Doctor." Alex smiled at him, happy to no longer see the blue glaze over his eyes.  
  
"You too." Erik took notice of her own ripped dress and boots. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Its a really long story starting with this asshole." Alex gestured to Thor who furrowed his brow at her. "It was at like 2am and I get travel sickness easily and I didn't even get to finish my ice-cream--"  
  
"That doesn't look very good." Erik turned her head to view a slice on her jaw she'd received in her fight with the elves. Alex touched the side of her jaw, pulling her hand away to see blood and dirt on her fingertips.  
  
"Oh. I didn't notice that." She wiped it off on the dress skirt. "Hopefully my new suit will deal with impact better."  
  
"New suit?" Erik smiled and Alex grinned, excitedly.  
  
"I've been working on the designs since New York. You should see it. See, I mixed the original outer layer with heavy-duty carbon fibre--"  
  
"Guys." Jane caused the two to stop and look at her. "We're gonna need everything you got on this. All the work you've been doing on gravimetric anomalies, everything." Jane got them back on point, stalking over to the desk in the corner.  
  
"Okay." The doctor nodded.  
  
"Are you well, Erik?" Thor approached his friend who chuckled before his smile faded quickly.  
  
"Your brother is not coming, is he?"  
  
"Loki is dead," Thor admitted quietly.  
  
"Oh, thank God." The doctor sighed. Thor looked at him in confusion. "I... I'm so sorry."  
  
"Thank you." Thor nodded, not expecting Erik to move forward and hug him, still pantsless.   
  
  
After the plans were laid out and discussions of the Aether were had, Jane, Erik, and Alex quickly taped up a few gravimetric devices and remotes before tossing them into two cars and splitting up from one another to drive to Greenwich.  
  
Erik, Jane, and Alex stationed themselves in the Greenwich library tower overlooking Malekith's ship landing in the grassy campus square as Thor went to confront and distract him.  
"We're running out of time."  
  
"Almost there." Jane worked around the screen, watching the signals from the devices Darcy and Ian were trying to plant around weakly humming.  
  
"Are you sure this is going to work? These devices were made to detect anomalies, not cause them." Erik worried.  
  
"Oh, come on." Jane glanced down to the campus to see Thor being thrown across the landscape by a blast from the Aether infused with Malekith. "Come on, Darcy." Jane turned nobs and buttons as if it would make her friends move faster. The three watched Thor fend off Malekith in distraction as the screen of the device in Foster's hands finally beeped awake with two signals online.  
  
"The Convergence will be in full effect in seven minutes." Alex checked her watch, narrating.  
  
"That just means we have to keep Malekith busy for eight." Jane readied the device in hand as Alex pulled up Darcy on her phone, connecting them in a call. "Okay, you might wanna hold on to something." Foster flipped on the device and below on the campus, a sonic wave emanated from one of the devices standing there, taking with it a few of the dark elves waiting for Malekiths order to fight.   
  
"Well, gravitational fields interact with the weak spot between worlds creating..." Alex began to ramble.  
  
"Oh, there's a guy with a sword!" Darcy responded loudly. Jane activated the device again to try and make the dark elf disappear but instead, she accidentally made Darcy and Ian disappear in the humming blue wave.  
  
Alex facepalmed.  
  
"Oops." Jane bit her lip.  
  
"Let's go." Erik tapped her shoulder and the three headed into the main building of the library, running through the large halls with students huddled up against the windows to watch the fight outside.  
  
"What are you all doing? You need to get out of here! Now!" Alex yelled out, running past.  
  
"You're joking, right? That's Thor out there waving his hammer around and everything." The student responded, holding his phone up to record the event as the three continued running. "Hey, aren't you Alexandra Stark?" He called after them.  
  
"Sometimes!" Alex called back over her shoulder before the force of a blast caused the library windows to shatter and everyone in the room to duck out of the way. Glass scattered across desks and tables and students slid under them to avoid injury.  
  
A bleep from Jane's machine as the three continued running out of the building and across campus made her frown.  
"What are you doing?" Erik shouted.  
  
"My signal's lost connection." Jane hit the side of the device a few times as dark elves not having been swiftly transported away spotted and began following them on foot. Alex picked up an abandoned weapon by an elf who'd been taken by the gravimetric devices.  
  
"Oh, piss off, would you?" Alex tossed the spear weapon into the chest of an elf, pinning him dead to the ground as others jumped over him to follow the trio.  
  
  
As they reached one of the devices within range, Jane flipped a switch, sending out a pulse that removed the dark elves from behind them, and instead brought back Ian and Darcy... who were locked in a kissing embrace.  
  
"Darcy?" Jane asked aloud.  
  
"Jane!" Darcy shoved Ian off her who fell to the floor.  
  
"Ian?" Erik asked.  
  
"Selvig." The boy responded.  
  
"Meow meow," Darcy called out as Mjolnir passed them overhead, rushing in the direction of its needing owner.  
  
  
By Malekith's ship, the realms come closer to converging together, opening portals and windows into other realms. Malekith stared up at the openings, reading the Aether within him to bring forth the darkness and to spread it across the galaxy.  
  
Jane, Erik, and Alex rounded up the gravimetric devices and ran to the thunder god standing outside of Greenwich station staring up at the swirling red and black mist halfway to the destruction of all light in the universe. The darkness was already spreading through Asgard and Vanaheimr.  
"We're too late." Jane shook her head.  
  
"The Convergence is at its peak." Alex held the devices in her hands, staring at the sky with a swallow.  
  
"Can those things stop him?" Thor gestured to the taped up weapons in her hands.  
  
"Not from here. We can't get close enough. The Aether would blind us." Alex explained what she knew from the very brief explanation she got in the car barely ten minutes before.  
  
"I can." Thor took the spears from Alex and rushed off towards Malekith, disappearing through the red and black mist cloud. Jane watched the screen in her hands, seeing the location detector dots move with Thor.   
  
As Thor threw the first to strike through the dark elf's body, Jane watched as a ready circle lit up, and flipped the switch to activate it. Malekith's arm, punctured by the spear, was transported away to Svartalfheim. but the Aether surrounding him quickly got to work on the repairs. Thor threw the other spear which was caught, but after another sonic wave, disappeared onto another realm's planet.   
  
Thor charged at Malekith, holding the spear in one hand, and his arm out for his hammer, jumping and blasting Malekith out of the Aether mist with the spear in his chest, pinning him to his ship. With a final pulse, Malekith disappeared to Svartalfheim, the Aether cloud and the portals of the Convergence disappearing into the sky.  
  
Jane ran out to the campus green, seeing Thor lying on the floor, passed out from the fight with his hammer lost somewhere to his side. The scientist ran over to him, kneeling down to check his pulse before a loud, echoing creak sounded from Malekith's ship. With nothing holding it up or powering the ship, it started to crumble and fall. Jane began to try and drag Thor out of its path but struggled with her lack of strength compared to his weight, and eventually stopped, diving on top of him instead as the ship tipped over completely ready to crush them.  
  
But it never came.  
  
Jane opened one eye to look and see no ship. Turning in confusion, she sighed as she saw the little Stark with her device in hand, pointing to where the vessel had previously been falling. Alex wiggled her eyebrows with a smirk and Jane shook her head with a smile, going back to checking Thor was still alive.  
  
Darcy, standing to the side with Ian and high on endorphins of the world no longer ending, grabbed her intern and kissed him.  
  
Alex sighed, dropping her arms and holding the device in one hand, turning to Selvig.  
  
"What a fucking weekend this has been."


	32. Walk it off

Alex should listen to her own advice. 'Don't study away from home. Ever.' But she didn't realise that would include a much-needed vacation that she would take for herself so soon after the Malekith incident and the death of one particular Frost Giant. So, taking a flight across America to stay in one of Tony's various holiday homes had been a pretty bad idea to start with, and then her dad went and fucked up once again. Not that she knew that just yet.  
  
So, having gotten out of the Greenwich catastrophe and her father punching Thor across the face before realising that was a mistake and being driven to A & E, Alex decided she needed a holiday. Not just a break from things at the Avengers Tower, but a proper holiday. And maybe pick up a bit of work along the way. So, she hopped on a plane to Sokovia, hoping to find an opportunity for something to inspire her work.  
  
Yeah, that was going to go well.  
  
  
Alex shifted where she lay, brain beginning to function again and register contact on her left cheek in a constant prodding motion that intensified as the action continued.  
  
"Mommy? Is she dead?" The voice was the last thing to fully pull Alex out of her nap, opening her eyes to the small blonde child sat in the plane seat beside her, head tilted and big blue eyes staring in curiosity.  
  
"Sorry, darling." The mother from the seat just beside the child apologised as the mechanic's brain kicked back into gear after her unintentional nap.  
  
"It's fine." Alex sat up in her seat, joints cracking involuntarily from being sat in the same position for hours. Rubbing her face and now slightly throbbing cheek, she shivered when she noticed how the plane temperature had dropped considerably. Pulling on a jacket, she changed the time zone on her watch, realising they were soon to land.  
  
Sokovia had been going through rough times. Protests, riots, government screw-ups. Sokovia wasn't well heard of, but it was full of opportunities to help. And that's what Alex enjoyed doing. But she didn't want this to turn into a press conference or a charity grab, and so that's why she told Tony she went back to MIT and didn't take the Stark Jet either. Hence, the seven-year-old child poking her.  
  
  
The plane soon landed in the terminal and Alex was sent to her rented apartment building, fairly bare but she hadn't expected much luxury. The spare blankets were a nice thought though. And the desk in the corner was useful. Alex pulled out her laptop, opening it up and putting her suitcase on the table beside it, opening it up to see her main packing and her newest project in particular on top.  
  
Blueprints loaded on the computer screen as the mechanic picked up a set of leather gloves; fingerless but armoured and ending at mid-forearm. Next came out the jacket top, navy bodice with jet black accents and a thick weaved underlayer to withstand the average knife and blade. The trousers were the same, blue and black colour scheme with the same armoured material. The boots to follow were knee height, zips on the inner shins and thick soles built for running.  
  
Her first suit. Or at least her first real one. Since New York, and influenced heavily by events following shortly after, Alex decided it might be a good idea to run around in something other than a racetrack suit that was already clawed and scratched up. This version she'd been planning out since the first time she properly went to MIT with her exoskeleton study. Now she was onto the prototype. After all, regardless of how protective racing suits tended to be made, she had nearly died fighting for the earth five times over the last couple of years.   
  
  
It was the second day of being in Sokovia. She was settling in well and the change of atmosphere was fairly productive and she'd actually managed to get a few things done on her project.  
  
Alex was knocked off her feet as the ground beneath her shook violently. A series of pulsing vibrations of the entire room held her to the floor, her laptop rattling against the table and giving her barely enough time before it fell off the edge. Then gravity seemed to get stronger, like the acceleration of a car but upwards. It lasted for a few seconds before Alex was able to push herself up from the floor to standing, and gravity seemed to relax itself a little.  
  
Callaway ran to the window, dragging the curtains back to see the streets filled with running men and women, all heading in the same direction and not looking like they were just late for the bus. Opening the window, panic shouts and screams along with a few singular voices telling everyone to run and escape filled the room instantly. And then there was...  
  
"Clint?" Alex blurted at the sight of the archer ushering everyone along, spinning around and looking back at her in equal confusion.  
  
"Alex?" Clint raised an eyebrow and jogged over to the window.  
  
"What are you doing here?" The mechanic leaned out of the window.  
  
"Saving the world. What are  _you_ doing here?"   
  
"Studying," Alex answered, glancing back at her suit. "What's going on?"  
  
"Long story short: Tony fucked up... again." The archer relayed and the mechanic rolled her eyes. "We found the sceptre, there are experiments running around, robots are trying to kill us. And now the city is flying. The city is flying, and I have a bow and arrow. None of this makes sense. But you need to get out of that building right now."  
  
"Give me a second to get changed."  
  
"No. Now."  
  
"No. Changed." Alex headed inside, then poked her head back out. "You'll see in a second. Go back to helping." She waved him off before grabbing her suit.  
  
  
 _ **"The Vibranium core has got a magnetic field, that's what's keeping the rock together."**_ FRIDAY scanned the church as Tony circled the area.  
  
 _"If it drops?"_  
  
 ** _"Right now the impact would kill thousands. Once it gets high enough: Global extinction."_** FRIDAY, regardless of not being human, could still emit something that sounded like regret. Tony winced.  
  
"Okay, does anybody mind telling me why the hell the world went to shit the moment I attempted to take a vacation?" The youngest Stark's voice suddenly appeared on comms, causing everyone else to go silent at the new voice.  
  
 _"...Alex?"_ Tony asked, disbelieving.  
  
"Hey, dad. How's it going? Another global disaster or is this a more interesting day?" Alex pulled up her gloves as she stood beside Clint helping people escape.  
  
 _"Why are you on comms?"_  
  
"Why are you flying above my head?" She fired back. Tony grumbled as he flew around, blasting parts of buildings to clear paths for people on the ground.  
  
 _"You're in Sokovia."_  
  
"I was trying to take a vacation so I didn't get dragged into another grudge match for one weekend yet here I am." Alex threw her arms in the air. Other Avengers on comms sighed at the public argument.  
  
 _"Kiddo, if we're still alive after this, I will personally allow you to kick my ass around in the gym without a fight if you want."_  
  
"Guys. Big clunky robot shooting us on a space rock into the sky?" Clint tapped Alex's shoulder to get her attention and started jogging away. "Come on!" Alex moved to follow, switching over guides from Clint to Steve to head into the main fight. Alex picked up a loose pipe from a broken building as she ran, swinging it into a nearby robot and yanking it out again as it crumbled to the floor.  
  
 ** _"I got airborne, heading up to the bridge."_** Steve was suddenly tackled beside her into the air. Callaway tossed the pipe at the robot who then dropped the Captain onto the windshield of a car.  
  
 _"Cap, you got incoming."_  
  
"Incoming already came in." Steve groaned as Alex pulled him off the glass, shards scattering on the floor. Though he looked in much better shape than the city around them, buildings crumbling and vehicles falling apart as kids and adults alike screamed and tried to save themselves from the crashing structures they used to live in. "Stark, you worry about bringing the city back down safely. The rest of us have one job: tear these things apart. You get hurt, hurt 'em back. You get killed... walk it off."

On that small speech, with only limited eye rolls from the rest of the team, they got to work saving the citizens from falling off the edges of the city and down to their deaths. Alex and Steve stayed on the bridge, using anything they could pick up on hand to fend off Ultron's creations, until the edge of the bridge began to disintegrate, and take cars that had been stopped there before the ground separated. Steve grasped onto the bumper of a red vehicle with a screaming redhead until the bumper broke and the car slid off into freefall. A passing thunder god quickly flew after the car, grabbing the woman and tossing her back up towards the bridge.  
  
Alex slid to the edge of the road, catching her arm as Steve grabbed Alex's waist, dragging both women back up to the safe ground, Alex leading the woman away from the unstable edge back to the main city.  
  
 _"Alexandra."_  Something grabbed the mechanic, flying her up into the air with a yell. Ultron himself had taken the time out of his day to lift her into the air as she punched his robotic body head.  _"You're bothering me."_  He tossed her towards the ground as she crash-landed into Thor, knocking him to the floor as she landed on his armoured chest, head knocking against the metal and disorienting her vision.  
  
"Okay. Ow." Alex groaned dizzily, sitting up and rubbing her head where she was sure the Asgardian armour had now imprinted. "Sorry, Thor. I swear I wasn't aiming for you."  
  
  
"The next wave's gonna hit any minute. What have you got, Stark?" Steve pulled them both back up to standing.  
  
 _"Well, nothing great. Maybe a way to blow up the city. That'll keep it from impacting the surface if you guys can get clear."_  
  
"I asked for a solution, not an escape plan."  
  
 _"Impact radius is getting bigger every second. We're going to have to make a choice."_  
  
"Not 'til everyone's safe." Steve stood at the edge of the flying city with Alex as Romanoff caught up to them. "I'm not leaving this rock with one civilian on it."  
  
 **"** I didn't say we should leave." Romanoff crossed her arms, looking out into the expanse of the open skies. "There are worse ways to go. Besides, where else am I gonna get a view like this?"  
  
 _"Glad you like the view, Romanoff."_ A new voice over comms, one everyone listening could recognise in a heartbeat.  _"It's about to get better."_ Like as if it was parting the clouds in the sky to make way, the old face of the Helicarrier made itself known to the Avengers looking at their salvation.  _"Nice, right? I pulled her out of mothballs with a couple of old friends. She's dusty, but she'll do."_ Fury sounded like he was grinning.  
  
"Fury, you son of a bitch." Steve chuckled.  
  
 _"Oooh! You kiss your mother with that mouth?"_ Fury smirked over comms, making Steve shake his head.  
  
"Let's load 'em up." The three jogged away to start loading people onto the lifeboats floating to the edges of the floating city.  
  
  
 _"They're coming for the core."_ Thor's voice, heard over both comms and in the air because of how loud his voice was purely on its own, caused each Avenger to head back to the church, guiding trapped citizens out from crashed buildings out onto the carriers parked around the edge of the city as they headed back.  
  
Alex and Steve arrived seconds before Natasha and Clint came crashing in on an abandoned bus, Vision, Thor, Tony, Wanda, and Pietro all gathering around the vibration drill sticking out in the centre of the church. Batting off the last remaining robot surrounding them with his hammer, Thor turned to the one robot left in sight, Ultron's final form, floating not far away from them in the sky.  
  
"Is that the best you can do?" Thor challenged loudly, hand gripping his hammer firmly. Ultron's form chuckled, raising a hand for the Avengers to notice the swarm of a robotic army jogging and flying towards them through the calamity on the floor surrounding the church building, a line of complete silver and blue stopping and staring at them all.  
  
"Are you kidding me?" Alex whined tiredly, just wanting this to be over already.  
  
 _"This is the best I can do,"_ Tony's slip-up responded.  _"This is exactly what I wanted. All of you, against all of me. How could you possibly hope to stop me?"_  
  
"Like the old man said." Tony and Steve shared a look before Stark turned to the thing he created. "Together."  
  
The Hulk's roar signalled the start of the fight, Avengers and robots a blur between each other, fighting and ripping one another apart with anything and everything to defend the vibranium core. Vision phased his hands through the robots, ripping out their internal wiring. Thor swung his hammer into surrounding crowds. The Hulk tore others apart with his hands as Wanda's red magic sparked in clouds surrounding the team. Tony flew overhead, blasting them away with his repulsers as Steve broke others into halves with his shield. Alex battered a few with a pair of discarded pipes as Clint used his bow to strike blows in the heads and Nat short-circuited the automations with her electric daggers.

Tony, Thor and Vision isolated Ultron outside, holding Ultron back with their powers. The heat and energy from the hammer, repulsors, and mind stone slowly started melting this vibranium body and they only stopped when Ultron was stumbling around on the ground, head severely damaged.  
  
 _"You know, with the benefit of hindsight--"_  Hulk punched him away across the mess of a city, turning to the remaining robots with a growl, causing them to scatter.and then scaring a few more robots off.  
  
"They're trying to leave the city."   
  
 _"We can't let them, not even one. Rhodey."_  Tony commanded through his suit.  
  
"On it," Rhodes replied, flying off with Tony after the remaining army.   
  
"We gotta move. You guys get to the boats, I'll sweep for stragglers, be right behind you." Steve talked to the remaining Avengers in the church.  
  
"What about the core?" Clint asked.  
  
"I'll protect it," Wanda spoke up, nodding to Clint. "It's my job."  
  
"Speaking of which, who are you?" Alex had barely had enough time to process being in another 'save the world - don't get killed' scenario, let alone the new three Avengers that had suddenly appeared in the team.  
  
 _"Alex, get your ass on a boat."_ Her father ordered voice strained in combat.  
  
"But we aren't finished."  
  
"Boat." Nat nodded in agreement, starting to walk out of the church.  
  
"Who are you, my mother?"  
  
 _"Boat, Alex. Or I'll get the Hulk to escort you."_  
  
"Okay, okay, I'm going." She may have been happy with Dr Banner, but the Hulk was another thing entirely. Alex followed Nat to the nearest lifeboat and walking on, muscles aching and head throbbing as the adrenaline from the fight disappeared. Taking up a clear bench to herself, she sat down in the centre, wincing and holding her side where Ultron had grabbed her.  She was definitely going to wake up with bruises tomorrow. But bruises were better than cuts, at least.  
  
Alex blinked as a familiar body was dropped lifelessly next to her on the floor of the lifeboat by paramedics. She blinked down to see the face of the youngest new recruit of the Avengers, Pietro, covered with bullet holes all bleeding and blue eyes icy and inanimate. She swallowed, crossing her arms over herself and feeling a chill crawl over her spine. She should be used to the idea of casualties by now, especially after Coulson, and she hadn't even known this person for more than ten seconds, but it still wasn't a nice feeling.  
  
Stumbling on after delivering her son back to his mother, Clint groaned and took up the bench across from Alex, lying down beside the body of the Avenger that saved his life, refusing the paramedics that came to try and treat him.  
  
"No, no. I'm fine." He brushed them off as he laid down, clearly in pain. "Oh, it's been a long day." Barton sighed, closing his eyes, drained. Callaway blinked for a long moment, deciding maybe that wasn't a bad idea, lying down on her bench and closing her eyes, letting fatigue quickly take her into an exhausted sleep.  
  
She really should be concerned about the number of times she's passed out in her lifetime.


	33. MIT MIA

"Alex!  _Alex!_ "  
  
Half a year passed without incident following Ultron. After meeting the newest Avengers and seeing off Thor to return to Asgard to figure out what he saw in his apparent vision, Tony and Alex had headed home from the new Avengers facility, but Alex didn't stay. Instead, she actually went back to MIT to finish another year in her course, because as chance was recently messing with her, she decided maybe leaving the states was a pretty bad idea. So now, almost all the way through her new semester, Alex had not had to look back over her shoulder for a good few months and had escaped the call of another world-ending catastrophe.  
  
"Alex!" Although not the call of her new best friend. Looking up from her phone screen to see the human version of an overactive puppy jogging over to her, books in both arms before coming to a stop in front of her and holding out a tattered A5 book to the mechanic with a grin. "Thanks for that. Mr Bruner is not a happy person when people forget their notebooks."  
  
"It's fine, Roe." Callaway smiled gently at her crimson-haired classmate before looking around at the busy campus. "Coffee?" She nodded to the cafe area.  
  
"I'd love one."  
  
Sat down at a table in the cleanest on-campus cafe together, one hot chocolate and one coffee on the table, the two students settled down happily, talking.  
"So, how was your break?" Rosaline, the one with an actual coffee, asked the mechanic.  
  
"Not so much a break, if you watch the news." Alex sipped her mug.  
  
"Oh yeah, I thought I saw you running around in the disaster." Her crimson lipstick matching her hair left a small stain on the porcelain cup rim. "Last time I saw you, you were giving the 'saving the world' thing a rest."  
  
"I wasn't even supposed to be there. I went to Sokovia to help around the city and suddenly the city starts flying." Alex gestured with her hands in circles towards the ceiling, trying to recreate the idea of the weird gravity that had hit her just before the Russian city began rising before giving up and resting her hands on her knees. "What about you? Interesting break?"  
  
"Not bad. Tyler took me out on Saturday to the shopping centre. Got a new dress." Roe responded with a smile.  
  
"How many dresses do you need?"  
  
"Always one more than I have, it seems. And it was mainly because he missed my birthday and mom told him he needed to get his sis something before I invented a revenge freeze ray." The girl chuckled at the idea that seemed far fetched, but to anyone who knew Rosaline Dubenich, knew that that was a perfectly viable claim. "You made any progress on your exoskeleton suit?" She was also one of the only friends Alex had trusted here with more than the regular passing notes of a classmate, and with the trust that she wanted her friendship and not her family influence.  
  
"Nearly. I'm still working on the armour part. I've got more bruises than I can count but at least its stab-proof... I think." Alex rubbed her side where she had last found a large purple blotch following her robotic battle.  
  
"You think or you know?"  
  
"Think. The material is wearing out quickly though."  
  
"Have you tried incorporating rubber insulation materials?" Her friend supplied, taking another sip of the coffee that seemed to be steaming much more than should be drinkable. Alex put her mug down and ran her hands through her hair.  
  
"Tried that already. It wears out too quickly and I couldn't find a way to make it regulate with my body temperature."  
  
"What about a kevlar mesh weave?" Roe's point caused Alex to pause, fingers threading through brunette locks. "Its light and durable, able to be built up with layers. And you could still include rubber insulation on pressure points and weak areas for additional tensile strength. Such as on your gloves or boots." Emerald eyes looked up at sky blue before the mechanic facepalmed.  
  
"How in the  _hell_ did I not think of that before?" Callaway shook her head at her own stupidity before looking at her friend. "Rosa, you're a genius."  
  
"Uh, Alex... look around." The redhead chuckled. Alex glanced around at all the students belonging to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Oh yeah. Alex unzipped her backpack, pulling out her personal workbook since the last one was given to the god of mischief, and started writing notes and ideas down already for a new suit design. "Right,  _you,_ I've decided, need a holiday." Roe talked as Alex sketched. "A proper one, without running after Norse gods and evil robots or the next thing your dad screws up."  
  
"Oy. It's not always his fault." Alex squinted at her before returning to drawing.  
  
"Sorry. But, in fact, we should all go on a real holiday. Grab Sophie, Tyler, and Adam and spend a week in Thailand, or go out across the country and swing around some karaoke bars or something, have some real fun. And I'm sure if anyone tries to kidnap you or one of us, we would be fine and could handle ourselves. And there's always the fact that you can literally call any of the Avengers."   
  
"Maybe when the term's finished. Until then, I'll just stick with trying not to get dragged into any other family business battles of mine." Callaway finished the last of her sudden ideas and notes before putting her notebook on the table, open with the pen in hand. "Thanks, Roe."  
  
"No problem." Her friend waved it off, hands covered in fingerless leather. "Fancy going out drinking this weekend? Two girls on the town, a night of unbridled debauchery?" She finished her coffee, wiping the lipstick off the cup with a thin table napkin.  
  
"Possibly. Let's see if either of us are still in the mood after this week when it gets to Friday." Alex was still dealing with exams and studies on the side, as well as her own projects. "And in the meantime, I'm going to be working on the suit." She closed her notebook.  
  
"Shoot me a text if you need more help. I'll be over to your side of campus in minutes. Or even if you just want to chat about classes or other stuff that comes to mind, or possibly talk about some of the more... attractive Avengers on your team. Tall, blond, patriotic ones perhaps." Roe smiled coyly.  
  
"For the last time, I'm not setting you up with Steve Rogers."  
  
"Oh, go on." Rosa nudged the younger's arm, making her wobble a little in her seat. The mechanic chuckled and shook her head at the starstruck girl who just pouted back. "Fiiiiine." She sat back with a defeated huff. "But what about the holiday idea?"  
  
"I think..." Alex played with the pen in her hand. "It actually might be a good idea. Here's hoping it doesn't turn into some type of war."  
  
  
A public plane was much more comforting when flying with friends beside you, rather than a six-year-old concerned for your living state. Summer vacation in Malibu was a little more comforting since Alex had lived there before and so knew the area, and so taking residence in one of the holiday homes her father had set up but hardly ever used before, Alex, Roe, Adam and Tyler landed in the airport and took a cab out to the mansion style building. Callaway hadn't told her father as an extra attempt at trying to hide from any other problems she could be involved in, not that that had really worked in the past, but heading to this home where a version of JARVIS or FRIDAY hadn't been installed was as safe a bet as Alex was going to get.  
  
The sun was hot but not burning, ideal for the summer break. And this house, in particular, had a gorgeous array of activities perfect for being outside as well as the lab inside, where if Alex had been on her own is exactly where she would have barricaded herself for the next few weeks. But, having guests over, she decided maybe to take a real break from everything was called for. Not that that stopped the world around her from carrying on without her influence.  
  
"Uh... Alex?" The mechanic glanced at her friend scrolling on a tablet. "Take a look." The screen was turned in her direction and Callaway ran through the articles, describing a bomb at the UN when something called the 'Sokovia Accords' for the aftermath of the last screw up was put into place.  
  
"Fucks sake." The brunette rubbed her head before picking up her phone. "I should probably..." The screen showed a barrage of messages from her father and a vast number of voicemails. After listening to a voicemail about the Sokovia Accords and a gentle warning by her father that she may be called in to sign for them, Alex switched off her phone and put it in her drink glass before cursing herself and the age of waterproof phones.  
  
"I'm sure Adam's crushing on you," Roe said from her side, causing the younger student to look at her, before glancing across the outside patio to the other side of the pool where said raven-haired boy was walking up and down in swim trunks and no shirt.  
  
"Nope." Alex relaxed back on her sun lounger, readjusting her sunglasses.  
  
"He constantly talks about you when you're out of class. He definitely has a science partnership he wants to offer you."  
  
"Nope," Alex repeated.  
  
"Maybe you should tell him you're off the market, then, being more inclined to evil yet somehow incredibly endearing Norse gods dressed in leather, instead." The redhead smirked, classic red lipstick framing perfect teeth.  
  
"I didn't like him like that. I barely knew the asshole." The brunette shrugged off the issue.  
  
"Oh please, 'you didn't like him like that'." Roe turned onto her side, one piece swimsuit tight around her curves as she leaned on an elbow. "I know you missed a huge chunk of the story out when you told me, and in that chunk, you're hiding the emotional details." Alex scoffed.  
  
"Emotional details? The only emotional details I felt was trying my best not to trigger  _his_ emotions and have him cut off my tongue, which I am very fond of by the way. Ice-cream is amazing."  
  
"Did he ever say why he was here in the first place? Like, what made him suddenly up one day and want to take over the earth with an alien army?"  
  
"You know, I really don't want to talk about this right now, Roe. I've only just gotten past it." Rosaline didn't know about Alex going to Asgard following the battle but the mechanic had given her very bare details about her three-week kidnapping. Roe was an annoyingly persuasive person and would dip into manipulative strategies if she wasn't getting what she wanted. Alex often theories she was the long lost daughter of Clint and Natasha, but after some light background research Alex would never admit to snooping around in, the theory was quickly dismissed. Shame.  
  
"Rosie!" A call of a male voice across the patio rang out, both girls glancing to the blonde in the water, damp hair brushed out of his eyes and a ball in hand. "Come swim!" Tyler invited, hitting the ball in the air before swimming after it.  
  
"Duty calls." Roe chuckled and stood, taking off her sunglasses to put on her sunbed and sliding off her flipflops before swan diving into the water with the grace of a real swan. Alex rolled her eyes behind her own sunglasses.  
  
"Alex!" The second male voice of the group snapped her head back to the water and apparent twenty-eight-year-old crushing on her. "Wanna join? We're playing water polo and could use a fourth person."  
  
"I'm alright over here, thanks." Alex waved them off, starting to relax back before getting a better idea and standing up, grabbing her sarong to wrap around herself. "Actually, I'm gonna get drinks. Anyone want anything?"  
  
  
Nights together were spent as any college student would, drinking and partying all over the city. And in Malibu, there was a wide range of places to jump from, including a few karaoke bars where the members of their group showed their varying amateur voices. Although drinks were shared, no one was hammered by the time they reached their final bar, which was more of a dance club, and much, much busier than anyone had expected.  
  
Pulsing music and flashing lights mixed with bodies pressed up against each other in every corner of the club made it easy to lose one another. And when Alex began to not be able to hear her voice, the normal things she was used to growing up a Stark now started to make her panic. Spinning around as lights flashed in front of her took her breath, pulsing music began to match her heart rate and she felt like the Smirnoff ice she'd downed a few bars back was going to come up and say hello. Then the bodies pressing up against her were the last straw, and she started pushing and writhing before backing up into a corner, breathing ragged and eyes flicking all over in a desperate attempt to find the exit again.  
  
"Alex. Alex. Alex!" Someone was shaking her shoulder and calling loud in her ear. She could barely hear the muffled voice but a hand turned her face toward the expression of her concerned classmate.  "Are you okay?" Roe shouted to her, but Alex didn't respond, staring at her and panting with wide eyes. "Okay, look at me. Alex, look at me. Keep your eyes focused on me, okay." Roe picked up on the hint and put one of Alex's arms over her shoulders before beginning to pull her towards the exit as Callaway squirmed and whined in her arms. "Tyler, go get her a glass of water!" She yelled over the music to her brother before turning to the younger student. "Alex? We're gonna step outside for a second, okay?" Next thing the mechanic knew they were out onto the street and her heartbeat now even louder than the pulsing club music. "Take it easy. I got you." Roe took her arm from over her shoulders, bracing it on the brick wall of the building beside her as Alex shook her head, eyes screwing and unscrewing, trying to make her brain realise she was safe and unharmed and breathing in something other than double strength cologne and cigarette smoke.  
  
Roe rubbed her back as she took in deep breaths, holding them in before letting them out. Exercises. Just remember her exercises. Alex breathing eventually evened out, both hands braced on the wall and alcohol successfully kept in her stomach, she looked over her shoulder at the redhead looking at her in concern.  
  
"Sorry."  
  
"It's perfectly fine, Al. You just got a bit overwhelmed." Her friend reassured her.  
  
"I don't know what it is. Ever since New York I've always hated large crowds and flashing lights. I'd forgotten about it until now because it hasn't been a problem in so long." The mechanic leaned against the brick wall, breathing in and out in deep turns.  
  
"Alex. Its okay. Everyone is allowed to have a freak out every so often. I have mine every other weekend." Roe tried to lift the mood with a chuckle. Alex didn't seem to agree with the humour. "Look, no one can expect you to be the perfect person. Everybody has flaws and anyone who says they don't is delusional." Roe leaned on the wall beside her. "With the things you've experienced, I'm surprised you weren't kicking and screaming as soon as we walked in." She added softly, putting a hand on her shoulder and turning Alex to face her properly. "You're not okay, but you will be." She nodded gently at the mechanic, who took in a last deep breath before letting it out slowly and nodding.  
  
"Thanks, Roe."  
  
"Anytime." The redhead patted her shoulder with a classic grin. "Now... how about we grab the boys and raise a little havoc that we will not remember by tomorrow morning, hm?"


	34. Vlog

_**Text Message  
Saturday 13 April  
17:32**  
Tony> Alex.  
  
 **18:00**  
Tony> Alex, pick up.  
  
 **19:00**  
Tony> Alex, I know you're mad at me but you could at least respond saying you're alive.  
  
  
 **Text Message  
Monday 16 April  
10:23**  
Tony> Alex, seriously kiddo, I'm getting concerned._  
  
 ** _11:00_**  
 _Tony > I'm tracking your phone.  
  
 **11:03**  
Tony> Why is your phone tracker switched off?  
Tony> Why does FRIDAY not know where you are?  
Tony> Why didn't you come back after MIT?_  
  
 _ **11:08**  
Tony> Alexandra Jessica Callaway Stark, answer your phone right now.  
  
        Alex> I'm alive. I'm fine. You fucked up. I'm staying out of it.  
  
Tony> Alex, I'm not happy about the accords but if it keeps nations from forcibly taking back control than yes, we should be monitored. The damage we've caused before has been too much to go unmanaged.  
  
  
 **Tuesday 17 April  
20:29**  
Tony> Alex, something's happened. I'm not going to be able to get to you for a while, I'm sorry.  
Tony> I love you.  
  
        Alex> Love you too, Tony.  
  
  
 **Today 18 April**  
09:34  
Tony> The Avengers have officially disbanded._  
  
"'Disbanded?'"  
  
"You alright?" Alex turned at the sound of Rosa in the doorway, leaning on the frame in her swimsuit accompanied by a pair of shorts on her lower half.  
  
"Yeah, it's nothing." Alex slid her phone in the pocket of her own shorts with a shrug. Rosa raised an eyebrow at her and Alex sighed. "The Avengers have apparently 'disbanded'."  
  
"Disbanded?"  
  
"Not my words." Alex shrugged again. "The UN got bombed, Sam and Steve have been dubbed fugitives, an old friend of Steve's who he lost seventy years ago is apparently alive and framed for terrorism, no one knows where Banner or Thor are, dad is having a breakdown, Rhodes was paralysed, the world is getting flipped on its already spinning head." The mechanic put her head in her hands. The bed dipped beside her, and then a hand was rubbing the space between her shoulder blades.  
  
"Why was the UN bombed?"  
  
"You read the report." Alex's hands muffled her response.  
  
"What's the _real_ reason?" Rosaline corrected. Alex peeked at her through her fingers to the calm expression of her best friend and sat up, Roe's hand still on her shoulders.  
  
"The Sokovia Accords. One hundred and seventeen countries approve of the government putting restraints on the Avengers. Dad sent me a digital copy, and it states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organisation. Instead, they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel, only when and if that panel deems it necessary." Alex explained, rubbing her temple as if it would unravel her thoughts like a string.  
  
"That's stupid." The elder scoffed.  
  
"Its what they want to do," Callaway shrugged, "I mean, I can agree that it would make the government more relaxed and if done correctly and appropriately, and it could save the world a lot of damage and consequences for things we bring to the table, directly or indirectly. But on the other hand, they'd be turning the Avengers into their own personal lapdogs and probably inviting more challenge in the idea that the Avengers had restraints and need other people's permission to do things before they can make their own moves. And that poses problems on imminent threats, as some things just can't wait for a panel to decide."  
  
"Can I read?" Roe asked. Alex passed over her phone open to the pages. It was barely a minute of reading before she heard "Yep. You're right. This is a load'a bullshit."  
  
"That's not even the half of it." Alex brushed her hands through her hair, tugging at the strands. "Captain America, Hawkeye, and Falcon have all been branded outlaws. So you definitely won't be getting that date with Stars and Stripes."  
  
"Never say never. Plus, I can see why he wouldn't want to sign them. Not to mention, if the person framed for the UN bombing really was 'James Buchanan Barnes', as in the same one at the Captain America memorial, it doesn't surprise me he risked everything to prove his innocence."  
  
"I thought you didn't know about that part."  
  
"I was reading about it on the iPad before, remember? Plus, I'm a fangirl, of course I've been to the Smithsonian memorial." Roe patter her shoulder softly then paused. "Do you wanna stay here for the rest of the holiday or go home? We'll go with whichever you want."  
  
"I'm not going home. Not now."  
  
"Your dad is probably missing you."  
  
"I don't care," Alex replied, bluntly. "He needs time to cool off, and so do I. I leave so I don't get dragged into another problem, and the world starts a war without me. I'm twenty-five for fuck's sake." The mechanic dropped her head in her hands again, taking in a deep breath, only hitching a little. Rosa softened at the sight, reaching out to her tentatively.  
  
"Alex."  
  
"I'm fine. I'm fine." She shook her head, voice muffled by her hands.  
  
"No, you're not." Roe turned her by her shoulders to face the redhead. "There are no cameras around. You don't have to pretend everything's fine with me, with us." She cupped the mechanic's cheek, thumb stroking away a stray tear. "Come here." She shifted to lean against the wall by the bed, pulling Alex with her to lay down, head resting on Roe's leg, a hand massaging her hair. "We'll stay for the rest of the week until our plane's scheduled to leave. Then you're going to go home, slap your father, hug him and apologise before deciding what you're going to do next. You're always welcome to crash at mine for the weekend, as long as you can put up with my health freak mother's food." Alex relaxed at her friend's gentle words and the hand petting her hair like a cat. "And if someone asks you to sign those Accords, you make sure to tell them exactly where they can stick them. Violently. You got me?" Roe turned her head so Alex stared up into her crystal blue eyes.  
  
"You're the best."  
  
"I know." The redhead grinned down at her before letting out a small sigh. "Also, if Steve Rogers ever comes back from being an outlaw from the government... can I please get his number?"  
  
  
Alex searched through what remained of her father's old servers. Since the building of the Avengers Building 2.0, her dad had moved a lot of stuff onto new servers with better security and faster information processing. The few things that had been left on the server were old files and stuff that wasn't really a huge deal to be lost to the public, but then in a file Callaway had never come across before, she clicked to see a video file with a blurred thumbnail that she was sure she'd never come across before. And on a plane flight with hours to go, she decided it could be some good entertainment.  
  
She stuck her earphones in, the first voice speaking over the phone a deep gravel tone as what she recognised as New York passed the window of a taxi.  
 _"New York. Queens. It’s a rough borough, but, hey, it’s home."_

_"Who are you talking to?" The camera whipped to the front of the car, not a taxi, and the mechanic could recognise that voice and back-of-head anywhere. Happy._

_"No one." The first voice responded, dropping the dramatic tone and returning to someone who sounded very young. Male. Maybe in his teens? "Just making a little video of the trip."_

_"You know you can’t show it to anyone." Typical Happy._

_"Yeah, I know."_

_"Then why are you narrating in that voice?"_

_"Um... because it’s fun?" The original voice replied._

_"'Fun.'" The driver repeated, keeping calm and his hands on the wheel._

_"So, uh, why do they call you Happy?"_

_Happy raised the partition between them, effectively shutting the first person off._  
  
  
The brunette's giggle caused her friend to look up from her magazine.  
"What?"

"Something I found on the Stark Server," Alex answered, undoing an earphone and holding it out to her. "Watch with me." Rosa stuck the other earphone in and watched with her.

_"Come on. I’m not carrying your bags. Let’s go." They had arrived at an aeroplane hangar. Happy got out of the car as did the cameraperson._

_"Hey, should I go to the bathroom before or..?"_

_"There’s a bathroom on it."_  
  
The camera walked up the stairs and checked the cockpit to see no pilot, and what Callaway recognised as a Stark Standard Jet.

_"No pilot? That’s awesome." The kid chuckled before sitting down across from Happy in the plane._

_"Is that where you’re gonna sit?"_

_"Yeah."_

_"This is your first time on a private plane?"_

_**"** My first time on any plane." Happy shifted to the other side of the plane as the cameraperson looked at the jet starting to take off, worrying about the engine. "Should it_ _\--?_ _Should it be_ _\--? Should it be making that noise?" A nervous flyer apparently._  
  
  
The next shot was at a hotel, following Happy up to a set of rooms. Happy ordered the cameraperson to suit up, and the two girls finally saw his face in the mirror as he changed into a red and blue onesie with cut-out goggles. He had a young face, early teens, brunet hair and fair blue eyes. The look of pure innocence covered in a dumpster-dived suit.

_"Okay, Peter, you got this." His name was 'Peter', apparently._

_"What the hell are you wearing?" Happy walked in._

_"It’s my suit."_

_"Where’s the case?"_

_"What case? What?" Happy walked around him, opening another door. "I thought that was a closet. - This is still my room?"_  Peter rushed into another room with a silver suitcase sitting on the bed.

_"Alright, I found the case. I found the case. I found the case." Peter picked up note lying on top. "'A minor upgrade'?" The case opened to reveal a high-tech suit, recognisable as Stark tech. "Whoa! Oh, my God." Peter pulled off his mask, facing the camera. "This is insane. **Insane**. Look at this thing. Look. Look at the eyes. This is the greatest day of my life."_

_The video jumped to the airport, Team Stark facing Captain America alone ready to fight.  
"Okay, there’s Captain America, Iron Man, Black Widow. Who’s that new guy?"_

_**"** Underoos!"_

_**"** Oh, that’s me. I gotta go. I gotta go." He left the camera angled between two trucks, recording him flipping in with Captain Amerca's shield in his grasp. "Hey, everyone."_

 

_Alex definitely recognised the next frame. Inside a luxurious car that she had helped build and then mend when it got crashed in a fight belonging to her father.  
"What are you doing, a little video diary?" The camera turned to see her father in the flesh. Alex felt something burn in her. "It’s all right. I’d probably do the same."_

_"I told him not to do it. He was filming everything. I’m gonna wipe the chip."_

_"Hey, hey, hey, hey. You know what? We should actually make an alibi video for your aunt anyway. You ready?" The camera switched between Peter and Tony._

_"An alibi? Sure. Okay."_

__"We rolling? Get in the frame. Hey, May. How are yo_ u doing? What are you wearing? Something skimpy, I hope." Tony laughed as Peter looked at him in disgust. "Peter, that’s inappropriate. Alright, let’s start over. You can edit it. Three, two, one. Hey, May. My gosh, Uh, I wanted to tell you what an incredible job your nephew did… this weekend at the Stark internship retreat. Everyone was impressed."_

_A car horn honked in the background._

_"Come on! It’s a freaking merge. I’m sorry." Happy complained._

_"This is because you’re not on Queens Boulevard. See, Happy is hoping to get bumped up to asset management. He was forehead of security, before that he was just a driver." Tony chuckled softly._

_"That was a private conversation. I don’t like joking about this. It was hard for me to talk to you about that."_

_"No, seriously, was he snoring a bunch?" Tony teased. The car suddenly screeched and stopped._

_"Alright. Here we are." The driver announced._

_"Happy, can you give us a moment? Grab Peter’s case out of the trunk?" Tony hinted and Happy stepped out of the car._

_"I can keep the suit?" The phone camera was lowered so it recorded the up-close sight of the car seat but the audio continued._

_"Yes, we were just talking about it." Tony cleared his throat. "Do me a favour, though. Happy’s kind of your point guy on this. Don’t stress him out. Don’t do anything stupid. I’ve seen his cardiogram. All right?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Don’t do anything I would do, and definitely don’t do anything I wouldn’t do. There’s a little grey area in there and that’s where you operate." Stark responded to the kid. Alex rolled her eyes, having heard that one before._

_"Wait, does that mean I’m an Aven-?"_

_"No."_  
  
The video cut off there, returning Alex's phone to the Stark Server video files. The two girls took a second to recognise what they just watched.  
  
"You know, you're brother's kinda hot." Rosa talked first. Alex furrowed her brow.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Is he not your brother?" Rosa nodded to the phone.  
  
"If he is, dad's got some explaining to do," Callaway responded, putting her phone away. "Why did you assume he's my brother?"  
  
"Well, for one, that's Peter Parker. And now I know he's apparently Spiderman. He's from Queens like me and he lives in my area. Smart kid, adorkable, bright future. Secondly, your dad gave him a suit to fight the Avengers in, like, your dad tolerates him." Roe explained, picking up her magazine again. "And also, he reminds me of you a little." She flicked open the magazine and Alex gave her look. "Just saying. You asked."  
  
"And now I wish I didn't." Alex turned back to doing her own thing. "He better not be my brother or that's another thing I'm going to have to talk to dad about doing without my knowledge."


	35. Tragedy

Thor exploded out of the bi-frost portal along with the severed head of the fire dragon. Blood and guts rained down on Skurge and his two women admirers, drenching them with purple insides as the head slid towards the centre of the room. As the yellow eye rolled over in its socket, the two women shrieked and rushed out of the observatory as Thor pulled himself off the floor, staggering as he wiped off guts from his fighting robes.   
  
"Well, well, well. Look who decided to pop in." Skurge stepped down from the stand, grimacing. "Thanks for scaring away my company and drenching my workplace in brains."  
  
"Who are you?" Thor adjusted the grip on his hammer, the Crown of Surtur securely strapped to his back.  
   
"Don't you remember? I'm Skurge." Thor did not remember. "We fought together on Vanaheim."  
  
"Right. Where is Heimdall?"  
  
"That traitor? No one knows. He's a fugitive of the throne."  
  
"Traitor?" Thor turned to him.  
  
 **"** Yeah. You see, Odin charged Heimdall with negligence of duty but he disappeared before the trial. Hard to catch a guy who can see everything in the universe." Thor nodded along, looking down the length of the rainbow bridge. "You're almost in time for the royal remembrance ceremony Odin's hosting."  
  
"The what?"  
  
"Your father is holding a ceremony in honour of your fallen brother, Loki. The whole kingdom will be there to commemorate him." Skurge related to the prince who furrowed his brow with a slow nod.  
  
"Right." Mjolnir span in circles before lifting Thor off the ground, sending him flying towards the castle.  
  
Dropping at the gates of the castle, Thor glanced around at the small crowd making its way through the threshold into the main courtyard. Looking up, he stared at the golden statue built at the forefront, the figure with outstretched arms in a `saviour' pose. Thor blinked at the image of his brother.  
  
Taking another look around, Asgard seemed to hold an odd feeling, and not just because Thor had been away for some time. Something wasn't right. And with the recent visions of wreck and ruin coming to the front of his mind, he decided it wasn't worth the risk of ignoring it.

An announcement to his left by a royal guard - the theatre play would start in a few minutes. 'Theatre play'? Since when did Asgard partake in theatre displays of any kind other than at royal banquets or parades?  
  
Thor gripped Mjolnir tightly. Something was definitely wrong. And he had a feeling what it was.  
  
But before he revealed his theory, he had to make a quick stop first.  
 

Under the microscope of the Stark Lab, the suit material seemed to have barely any imperfections in its weave. Alex grinned proudly at her work. This material was lighter, stronger, more durable. She'd really worked hard after asking Rosa for notes... and then found the plans for Peter's 'minor upgrade' suit on her father's servers.  
  
The ground beneath her started to vibrate, causing her to look away from the microscope in confusion before a chamber of rainbows appeared beside her and papers started flying around the room, the wind speed in the area picking up. The rainbows faded away to reveal the prince of Asgard standing there and Alex put her hands down over the falling sheets on the desk.  
  
" _Paperweights_! I need  _paperweights_!" She yelled at herself before turning to her friend. "Thor." She nodded at him before pulling her hands off the desk, Thor looking around her at her suit on the desk, curiously. "Not that it's not nice to see you and everything but... what are you doing here?" She wiped her hands on her jeans.  
  
"Is that your battle garment?" He nodded behind her, and she nodded. "You may want to put that on."  
  
"It's not finished."  
  
"I require your assistance." Thor approached her and she quickly backed up.  
  
"Don't you  _dare_ do that shit again with the Bifrost. I swear I will slap you into right the next realm." She held up her hands ready, regardless of the real consequence of breaking her wrist. Thor stopped and sighed.  
  
"Please, dress. We don't have time to waste."  
  
"What's the problem?"  
  
"I've been shown visions of the future. I have seen the destruction of the universe."  
  
"Who hasn't by now?" Alex turned to her desk, turning off the microscope.  
  
"But something is not right on Asgard. And I require your presence to prove it." Thor continued to plead as Alex looked at him. "Lady Callaway, I beg for your assistance, for the good of your world and mine." Callaway picked up her suit off the table, running her thumbs over the woven material design.  
  
"You know, I was going to go for a massage after this."

  
After another dizzying ride through the Bifrost, the two flew past Skurge and towards the golden courtyard again, making their way through the crowds to see the stage set up with different actors, one for Thor, one for Loki, one for Odin, and one for... Alex?  
  
 _"You fool, you didn't listen!"_ The Thor actor held Loki as he lay on the ground, replicating the events and setting of the younger gods death.  
  
 _"I'm sorry."_ The Loki actor with a horrible black wig replied.  
  
 _"Lady Callaway, get help!"_ Thor's actor shouted at the female.  
  
 _"Somebody, help!"_ Alex's apparent actress ran offstage yelling pathetically.  
  
The real Alex looked confused. That was not how it happened. Her actress's costume was actually fairly similar to the ripped dress she had donned that day, and from what she could make out her hairstyle and makeup were extremely detailed to what Alex had worn. It was almost creepy for the resemblance.

 _"Sorry for all I've done. I'm sorry I tried to rule Earth. I'm sorry about that thing with the Tesseract. I just couldn't help myself. I'm a trickster. Sorry about that time I turned you into a frog."_ The Loki actor continued.  
  
 _"It was a wonderful joke."_  
   
"'Twas indeed hilarious." Odin, yet to be noticed until now, laid on a lounge chuckling, sipping wine and thoroughly enjoying himself.  
  
 _"Tell my story. Build a statue for me."  
  
"We will build a big statue for you."  
  
"With my helmet on, with the big bendy horns."_Someone had clearly taken dramatic license writing this.  
  
 _"I will tell Father what you did here today."_  
  
"I didn't do it for him," Odin whispered to the actor onstage who nodded, looking at fake Thor.  
  
 _"I didn't do it for him."_  He recited before dying dramatically in Thor's arms, who cried out in anguish.   
  
 _"And so, Loki died of his wounds, giving his life for ours."_ Odin's actor appeared onstage in gold robes and a staff.  _"He fought back those disgusting elves, he brought peace to the realm. Loki, my boy… ‘Twas many moons ago I found you on that frostbitten battlefield."_ A small Asgardian Boy entered, painted blue to depict a frost giant crawled onto a fake rock on the stage.  _"On that day, I did not yet see in you Asgard's saviour. No. You were merely a little blue baby icicle that melted this old fool's heart."_  
  
The crowd erupted in applause to end the play. The actors' lined up onstage and bowed as they were cheered. The real Odin stood up, leading the crowd in the applause and cheer.  
  
"Bravo! Bravo! Well done. Bravo." He chuckled softly as the actors took in the praise.  
  
"Father." Thor looked to Odin, catching his attention.  
  
"Oh, shit." Odin nearly choked on his wine with a mutter. "Uh, my son, Thor, has returned! Greetings, my boy." Odin's fluidity suddenly replaced itself by a rigid and regal posture as he announced to his audience.  Alex squinted at the change.  
  
"It’s an interesting play. What’s it called?" Thor continued on as people began to disperse.  
  
" _The Tragedy of Loki of Asgard_. The people wanted to commemorate him." Odin took another sip from his goblet before placing it down.  
  
"Ah, indeed they should. Oh, I like the statue. A lot better looking than he was when he was alive, though. A little… a little less weasely, less greasy, maybe." Thor chuckled softly. Odin soured, masking something else. Thor lifted the chained skull of Surtur from his back. "Do you know what this is?"  
  
"Oh, the skull of Surtur. That’s a formidable weapon!"  
  
 **"** Do me a favour. Lock this away in a vault so it doesn’t turn into a giant monster and destroy the whole planet." Thor ordered a nearby hard who nodded and quickly ran off to perform the errand.  
  
"Alfather. It is nice to see you again." Alex nodded at Odin, watching as he turned to her, and something flashed in his eyes. Odin froze, watching her slowly grow suspicious of his lack of response.  
  
 **"** It is nice to see you, dear." He managed to blurt with a small bow before turning back to Thor. "So it’s back to Midgard for you, is it?"

"Nope." Thor yo-yo'd Mjolnir in the air. "I’ve been having this reoccurring dream lately. Every night, I see Asgard fall into ruins."  
  
"That’s just a silly dream, signs of an overactive imagination."  
  
"Possibly. But then I decide to go out there and investigate. And what do I find, but the Nine Realms completely in chaos. Enemies of Asgard assembling, plotting our demise, all while you, Odin, the protector of those Nine Realms, are sitting here in your bathrobe, eating grapes." Thor advanced on his father."  
  
"Yes, well, it is best to respect our neighbours’ freedom." Odin fiddled with his left hand. Alex recognised the gesture from somewhere but couldn't place it.  
  
"Yes, of course, the freedom to be massacred."  
  
"Yes, besides I’ve been rather busy myself."  
  
"Watching theatre."  
  
"Well, board meetings, and security council meetings…" Thor had figured it out, Callaway had noticed the way he spoke was significantly different than last time she had met the Alfather.  
  
"You’re really gonna make me do it, aren't you?"  
  
"Do what?" Odin watched his son throw Mjolnir through the crowd and a fair difference away before grabbing Odin by the back of the neck. Royal attendants and the royal bodyguards rushed at Thor, but he kicked them away.  
  
"You know that nothing will stop Mjolnir as it returns to my hand. Not even your face." Mjolnir stopped flying mid-air and started rocketing back towards them as Odin struggled.  
  
"You’ve gone quite mad. You… you’ll be executed for this."  
  
"Then I’ll see you on the other side, brother," Thor smirked at him.  
  
"All right, I yield!" The voice changed to an all too familiar tone at the same time a shimmering illusion on the Alfather disappeared, revealing a much skinnier, taller, mischievous god to the gasping audience around them, in time for Skurge to have finally caught up and made his way out from the crowd, panting.  
  
"Behold! Thor… Odinson."  
  
"No, no." Loki clicked and spun around, lips tight. "You had  _one_ job. Just the one."  
  
"Where’s Odin?" Thor returned to his brother.  
  
"You just couldn’t stay away, could you? Everything was fine without you. Asgard was prospering. You’ve ruined everything. Ask them." Loki shrugged.  
  
"Where’s Father? Did you kill him?" Thor backed his brother up towards the grand sofa behind him.  
  
"You had what you wanted. You had the independence you asked for." Loki landed on the lounge as Mjolnir put pressure on his chest. "Ow, ow, ow, ow. Okay. I know exactly where he is."  
  
"You're alive?" Alex had finally managed to pull herself out of her shock of seeing the same person she mourned at the moment of his death alive and well.  
  
"Stark." Stark. Not 'intern'. Not 'Songbird'. Stark. Alex set her jaw.  
  
"Thor, grab him and move quickly before I kill him myself for real." She grumbled out at the god before noticing the people around her look in concern. "Its a figure of speech, people. Chill your Asgardian asses out."  
  
  
  
"I swear I left him right here," Loki announced as the last of the Shady Oakes Home was being cleared by the bulldozers.  
  
"Right here on the sidewalk, or right there where the building is being demolished? Great planning." Thor nodded, dressed in casual clothes same as Loki in his black suit.  
  
"How was I supposed to know? Can't see into the future. I'm not a witch."  
  
"No? Then why do you dress like one?"  
  
"Hey." Loki squinted back at him.  
  
"I'm in my bright blue and black bodysuit standing on the sidewalk for no reason," Alex added to the conversation. Loki glanced at her and snapped his fingers, her black and blue bodysuit changing into jeans, a band shirt, and her classic lab coat: an outfit she recognised as one from her three weeks of being kidnapped by the psychotic god. Alex said nothing.  
  
"A 'thank you' would be nice, Intern," Loki mumbled.  
  
"I'm not talking to you." She grumbled back.  
  
"You just did." He replied, looking at her. Alex resisted the urge to slap him.  
  
Suddenly, a glowing orange circle of sparks started below Loki, causing all three of the group to look in confusion.  
  
"What's this? What are you doing?" Thor looked down at the strange symbols appearing.  
  
"This isn't me. Ah!" Loki dropped out of sight, vanishing through the circle portal, a small card fluttering to the ground in his place. Alex rubbed her eyes, blinking hard. Did she drink decaf or something this morning?  
  
"Loki?" Thor poked at the note with his umbrella before picking up the note. 177A Bleecker St.

 

Arriving at the address after being guided by numerous city road signs, the pair knocked on the door of the given address, the third knock sending them both inside the building. Glancing at each other oddly, they began looking around the sanctum strangely and curiously.  
  
"Thor Odinson. God of Thunder. Alexandra Callaway-Stark. Avenger." The voice came from their side, a man approaching the two on foot before coming to a stop. Thor raised the tattered umbrella in hand in gentle warning. "You can put down the umbrella."

"Nice to see you again, Dr Strange." He had taught a few classes at MIT in her first year there. But she didn't know about the car crash or anything to happen afterwards. So seeing him like this was... kind of weird.  
  
"You too, Miss Callaway." Stephen nodded to her in recognition.  
  
"So, Earth has wizards now?" Thor raised an eyebrow, dropping his umbrella.  
  
"The preferred term is "Master of the Mystic Arts."   
  
"All right, wizard. Who are you? Why should we care?"  
  
"My name is Doctor Stephen Strange, and I have some questions for you. Take a seat." Thor, Alex, and Strange were abruptly sitting in high-backed chairs. "Tea?" Teacups appeared in the guests' hands.  
  
 **"** I don't drink tea." Thor shook his head.  
  
 **"** What do you drink?"  
  
"Not tea." The teacup was replaced by a stein of beer.  
  
"Would you like something else, Miss Callaway?"  
  
"I'm good." She shook her head, the teacup disappearing.

 **"** So, I keep a watch list of individuals and beings from other realms that may be a threat to this world. Your adopted brother, Loki, is one of those beings..." As Stephen began to ramble to Thor about Earth laws, Alex was taken by something across the room, getting up from her chair to investigate.  
  
She walked carefully through the glass cases and artefacts, cautious not to knock anything down as she could hear Thor doing in the distance. All the different pieces around her were strange but some she felt like she'd seen somewhere. They were almost like Asgardian artefacts, just a little more ancient and weird.  
  
A sudden short breeze from her side turned her head to a corner, slowly stalking towards it and turning around to see a floating object. It was a cloak, and it was moving like it was not affected by gravity, its back facing her.  
  
"Uh... hi?" She had no idea what this thing was, or if it possessed the ability to understand her, but she talked anyway. The cloak suddenly spun around to her dramatically, as if she'd caught it doing something embarrassing. Stark struggled for something to say. "You look nice." Was the first thing to come out of her mouth, and she nearly face-palmed at her own dumb brain. The cloak floated towards her a little, contorting at the waist in a sort of bow. Alex did a curtsey as it seemed appropriate. "Um..." The mechanic rocked on her feet, trying to think of something to say. "Nice place this is. These artefacts are fascinating." She turned to the nearest glass cabinet. "I've only ever seen things like these in books and they don't do them justice at all." The cloak tilted its collar a little as if asking 'truly?'. Alex nodded. "The ancient markings are captivating, information and artefacts passed down through generations. Its almost a shame how some people just pass and ignore them." Alex turned to the crimson object (looking?) facing her, smiling softly. The cloak began to guide her around the rest of the building.  
 

As Stephen moved himself and Thor again to the bottom of the staircase a few minutes later, Thor stumbled down the stairs at the sudden shift of gravity.   
  
"We could have just walked." The thunder god shrugged. Stephen shrugged sarcastically.  
  
"Uh... guys?" The two men looked up to see Alex walking towards them, a crimson cloak wrapped around her like a blanket. "This thing is giving me a really tight hug." She looked at Stephen for help. He gestured with his hand, and after a moment's hesitation, the cloak unwrapped itself from Alex before attaching around its proper owner.  
  
"Sorry, Miss Callaway." Stephen bowed his head as the cloak corner made a waving motion to her. Alex waved back, slightly awkwardly.  
  
A shimmering orange portal opened as Strange cast it, standing back.  
"He's waiting for you." Stephen nodded. "Oh, don't forget your umbrella."

"Oh, yes." The prince held out his arm to call his hammer back to his hand, hearing numerous crashing and shattering sounds from various places in the building. "Ssssorry." He apologised before his umbrella returned to his grasp. "I suppose I'll need my brother back."  
  
 **"** Oh, yeah. Right." Strange opened a portal above them through which the god of mischief fell through, crashing on the floor with a groan.  
  
 **"** I have been falling for 30 minutes!" Loki yelled out, glaring at the wizard. Alex bit her lip to stifle a giggle.  
  
"You can handle him from here."  
  
"Handle me? And who are you, sorcerer?" Loki pulled out two blades in frustration.  
  
"Loki." Alex caught his attention, giving him a look as he twisted to her. "Don't start." She didn't bother to make it sound like a request, too tired and annoyed to not make it an order. Loki seemed to be internally fighting over listening to her but soon sheathed his weapons, much to his brother's and the doctor's confusion.  
  
"Bye-bye." The portal flew to all three of them, transporting them to a grassy land at the edge of Norway, the temperature quickly dropping as the portal disappeared behind them. The trio glanced between each other before looking around, spotting a familiar figure on the rocks by the edge of the cliff.


	36. Confrontation

**"** Father?" Thor was first to approach his father standing by the cliffside, looking out to the sea, dressed in civilian clothes.  
  
"Look at this place. It's beautiful." His sons joined him at either side, Alex hanging back to let them talk.  
  
"Father, it's us." Thor put his hand on Odin's shoulder.  
  
"My sons. I've been waiting for you."  
  
"I know. We've come to take you home."  
  
"Home, yes. Your mother, she calls me. Do you hear it?" He looked out to the sea, the others looking up to the sky in confusion,  
  
"Loki, lift your magic," Thor demanded softly. Loki shook his head.  
  
"Took me quite a while to break free from your spell. Frigga would have been proud." Odin smiled at his youngest before taking notice of his other guest behind them. "Lady Callaway." He nodded proudly, and Alex nodded back. "Come and sit with me. I don't have much time." He took Thor and Loki's hands, sitting on the rock beside the edge, grey clouds rolling overhead above them but not yet ready to let the storm through.  
  
"I know we failed you. But we can make this right." Thor promised. Odin patted the eldest's knee with a head shake.  
  
"I failed you. It is upon us. Ragnarok."  
  
"No, I've stopped Ragnarok. I put an end to Surtur."  
  
"No. It has already begun. She's coming. My life was all that held her back. But my time has come. I cannot keep her away any longer." The Alfather sighed, seeming to be increasingly losing energy.  
  
"Father, who are you talking about?"  
  
"Goddess of Death. Hela. My firstborn. Your sister."  
  
"Your what?" Thor and Loki stared in confusion.  
  
"Her violent appetites grew beyond my control. I couldn't stop her, so I imprisoned her. Locked her away. She draws her strength from Asgard, and once she gets there, her powers will be limitless." Odin continued to explain calmly.  
  
"Whatever she is, we- we can stop her together. We can face her together." Thor stumbled to consider.  
  
"No, we won't. I'm on a different path now. This you must face alone." Odin straightened up, looking between the two and taking a breath. "I love you, my sons. Look at that. Remember this place. Home."  
  
A warm energy between the two brothers caused them to turn and watch as their father slowly began to glow, and then gently dissipate into wisps of stardust. The two stood off the rock and followed their father's remains, flowing off towards the clouded sky and onward towards Valhalla before disappearing out of sight completely. The Alfather was dead. Silence.  
  
The sky above began to darken, thunder crackling above the three, two sets of eyes landed on Thor, setting his jaw with electrical sparks passing through his fingers.  
  
"Brother." Thor turned towards Loki, his eyes burning with rage. Loki took a small step back and Alex started approaching them, concerned.  
  
"This was your doing."   
  
A piercing scream cuts the air as a mess of green and black appeared behind the trio, black magic swishing around violently to form an opening portal, letting a tall skinny figure emerge from the mayhem, breaking the dimensional rift that once held her back.  
  
The figure took a moment to assess her surroundings before turning to the three, Thor and Loki transforming into their Asgardian armour and the illusion dressing Alex in her labcoat lifted, revealing her black and blue suit.  
  
"So he's gone. That's a shame. I would've liked to have seen that." The female's outfit was black, green, and silver, ripped and split at different areas, looking as if to have been through a battle.  
  
"You must be Hela. I'm Thor, son of Odin." Thor nodded.  
  
"Really? You don't look like him."  
  
"Perhaps we can come to an arrangement," Loki responded.  
  
"You sound like him." Hela stood straight, confidence radiating off her in waves with a smirk. "And what are you? My sister?"  
  
"You would wish." Alex looked her up and down. Hela huffed.  
  
"Kneel."  
  
"Beg your pardon?" Loki narrowed his eyes. Hela struck out her arm, a sword forming in her hand.  
  
"Kneel. Before your queen." She shrugged back. Alex glanced between Hela and Loki.  
  
"I don't think so." Thor swung back and hurled Mjolnir towards her, only for Hela to catch it in one hand, holding it back from breaking her ribs with ease. Thor tried calling back but it stayed in her grasp. "It's not possible!"  
  
"Darling, you have  _no idea_  what's possible." Hela dug her fingers into Mjolnir before crumbling it completely, sending cracks of lighting around the island. Running her hands over her hair, Hela's royal headdress appeared along with two swords in hand, approaching the three.  
  
"Bring us back!" Loki yelled to the sky in a panic.  
  
"No!" Thor ran towards Hela before the rainbow picked up all three fighters to bring them back to Asgard. Alex immediately felt sick, since this was the first time she'd done this without being held onto, and tried to keep her balance through the psychedelic prism that was the Bifrost. "Loki!" Thor yelled glancing down, the others looked to see Hela following quickly behind. Grabbing Loki and spinning him, tossing him out of the stream before Alex kicked her head, and was yanked by her ankle to follow Loki, shattering the side of the rainbows and fly off, quickly losing consciousness as soon as she left the stream.   
  
  
Her brain had a heartbeat. It was a heavy thumping pulse and pain that made Alex tense up every two seconds, spreading through her head the more she began to return to the land of the conscious. She was lying on something flat, stone cold. And she could hear mumbling in her ears like multiple voices layered over each other but muffled as if they were on the other side of a house. A sudden wave of nausea accompanied by her hearing returning told her there were indeed multiple voices, but they weren't near her specifically. Until one cut through her haze.  
  
 _"Seems like somebody had a little too much celebration wine."_ It was male, confident, and with an almost royal undertone. Alex shifted, rolling onto her back less than painlessly before rubbing her face and blinking open her eyes to what appeared to be a multicoloured version of Asgard.  
  
"Where the... what the... who the..." She sat up gently, hands resting on either side of her skull with a lazy blink. "Ugh, my head."  
  
"I think you had one too many goblets at our street party last night." The voice chuckled and Alex took a real look around. Definitely not Asgard. Not with the insane and elaborate costumes everyone around her was wearing. Did someone invert the colour setting in her brain or something?  
  
"I'm not drunk." The mechanic pushed herself onto one knee, then up to her feet, holding her hands out for balance as she wobbled a little in disorientation. "I'm not even from here. At least I think I'm not. Or I might have just stumbled into a gay club again."  
  
"And where are you from, then?" She focussed her eyes on the man standing in front of her, dressed in golden robes otherwise decorated in party colours, and a blue stripe of what appeared to be paint leading down from the middle of his lower lip to his chin.  
  
"Earth? Have you heard of that?" Alex responded when her brain kicked into gear.  
  
"I have heard of Earth but it's not as popular as you might like it to be according to other planets. We've never had someone from Earth on Sakaar before, however." The man grinned.  
  
"Well, it's not exactly a quick stop on the Underground." Alex huffed and took another look around at the balcony she was standing on, colours amess the walls and floor in some type of decorative display. "Where is this?"  
  
"A planet surrounded by cosmic gateways, Sakaar lives on the edge of the known and unknown. It is the collection point for all lost and unloved things."  
  
"Who are you?" Alex turned back to him, looking at his almost offensively bright clothes again.  
  
"Forgive me and allow me to introduce myself." He swirled his arms in a grand gesture and a bow. "My name is Grandmaster. I'm the creator of Sakaar and preside over a little harlequinade I like to call the Contest of Champions. People come from far and wide to unwillingly participate in it. You, my friend, have just landed on the most heavenly planet in the universe." He smiled happily at his own introduction. Alex blinked.  
  
"I'm sorry, I just did that thing where I wasn't listening to anything you said because I'm distracted by how fabulous your outfit is." She rubbed her face again as the Grandmaster took in her compliment.  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yeah. It takes guts to pull off something like that. I can say you do it pretty well, Grandmaster." She was starting to get the idea of this place and was also really appreciative of the fact this person had not kidnapped or captured her and forced her to some horrible fate... yet. And he seemed to like her compliments. The grandmaster smirked a little, moving his shoulders in a shy shrug.  
  
"This old thing? I picked it up out of the trash heaps aeons ago." The Grandmaster flicked the bottom of the robe where the split began. "But I won't mind if you keep telling me how good it looks." He chuckled softly, starting to walk into the main building. Alex took the subtle hint to follow, taking in more of her surroundings.  
  
  
Walking inside, the room was grand and spectacular, obviously built for large parties and celebrations if the decorations didn't make it painfully obvious already. There were a group of musicians playing strange, unrecognisable instruments, filling the room with electronic style music that wasn't Alex's personal preference but wasn't bad altogether. Callaway watched as the Grandmaster meandered over to a large piano-like contraption, riffing a melody over the existing music, before letting her eyes wander around the room at other guests dressed in radical and original outfits, looking like people straight out of a comic book while talking over wine and finger foods.  
  
She was about to turn back to the Grandmaster before her eyes froze on a certain place. Or rather, a certain someone. A certain someone sitting on the couch by the large window overlooking the arena, a girl on each side of him, happily laughing and feeling ultimately everything Alex was not as he told the story of the first time he fell off the Bifrost, earning a laugh from his audience.  
  
"Loki?" Alex called out, catching him before he sipped from his goblet, eyes trying to track the sound of the voice. "Loki." She said more firmly, and icy blue eyes matched emerald green.  
  
"You know this honoured guest?" Grandmaster was suddenly at Alex's side as she watched Loki stand from the sofa, excusing himself. "He showed up a little while ago and it one of the most scrumptious little prizes I have ever had the pleasure of welcoming to my planet. He was too pretty to make face my beloved champion, charming, especially in that leather ensemble of his." Alex looked at the Grandmaster with an odd expression as Loki reached them.  
  
"Intern." The prince greeted, nodding softly.  
  
"Oh, we're back to 'Intern' now?" Alex turned to him with crossed arms, scowling.  
  
"I suppose I have some explaining to do." Loki pulled at the collar of his new Sakaarian tunic. Alex was annoyed to think he looked good.  
  
"Some? Try  _'three years of mourning over you'_ worth explaining."  
  
"Heeeey, I can tell there's a little bit of tension going on here..." Grandmaster smiled, wobbling his hands side to side and sucking in through his teeth. "So, whatever the case, all I can suggest a good couple of drinks and a night of celebration and lust for reunited friends, lovers, whichever, to forget about it." He turned to a server and grasped two jewelled goblets, holding them to either guest.  
  
"We're not lovers." Both answered simultaneously. The grandmaster pushed the goblets into their hands.  
  
"Are you sure?" He smirked with a wink before wandering away to greet another round of guests and the two were left facing each other in silence other than the music. Alex took one look at the goblet before setting it aside, untouched.   
  
"You're not dead."   
  
"Have we not already realised this?" Loki tilted his head, cutely.  
  
"Don't get smart with me, Loki, I'm not in the mood." She grumbled, fisting her hands before relaxing them. "I saw you die. In my arms. I mourned for you, you selfish bast- you know, I don't even know why I'm surprised anymore."  
  
"I'm... honoured?" Loki raised an eyebrow, unsure how to feel. "Why would you care so much, Midgardian? I'm surprised you're so bothered about this. I would've thought you would have been annoyed by the fact that I'm  _not_ dead after all I've done to you."  
  
"I helped you escape execution just so you could go and 'die' the next damn day. Of course, I'm bothered."  
  
"Maybe you should take a drink. You seem tense." Loki sipped his own. Alex took in a deep breath, pinching the bridge of her nose.  
  
"Are you deliberately  _trying_ to annoy me?"  
  
Before Loki could answer, he was suddenly attacked by a girl on either side of him, cuddling up to his form and batting their somehow genetically blue eyelashes that did not match their green eyeliner and silver highlighter.  
  
"Lokiiii, are you going to come back and finish your exciting story about the Bifrost thingy?" One of them was stroking his shoulder and smiling half-drunkenly. Alex tightened her fists, jaw set, then paused, confused, to think where the sudden annoyance she felt came from.  
  
"I'm in the middle of something, girls, but maybe later." Loki smiled sweetly at the two, but Alex could see the slight edge of uncomfortable in his eyes.  
  
"Aw, but your highness..." The other whined like a child.  
  
"Later. It is worth the wait, believe me." He gave his best smirk and the two girls giggled, disappearing off back to the group waiting on the sofa.  
  
"Glad to see you settling in so quickly," Alex commented, nodding at the girls with a head tilt.  
  
"Are you jealous, intern?" Loki kept his smirk.  
  
"You wish. In fact, I'm too wound up to feel anything else towards you but anger right now." Loki seemed to take a closer look at her, properly looked and changed his attitude.  
  
"Were you truly that affected by my death?" Loki's voice was softer as if surprised. Alex picked up the goblet from before and took a swig, forcing away the urge to cough at the strength. The prince glanced at the floor, then around the party, then back to his Songbird. "At least your outfit fits in with the oddities everyone else is donned in."  
  
"Yours is nice." She mumbled back.  
  
"Thank you."   
  
"If it's a new outfit you're after, I can have one of my many lovely assistants pick something out for you." The Grandmaster, or Houdini as Alex was mentally dubbing him for suddenly appearing and disappearing every two damned seconds, offered.  
  
"No, no, no. That's not what I meant. I'm fine-" Alex shook her head, fervently.  
  
"No, I won't take 'no' as an answer." The Grandmaster wagged a finger. "Topaz, take our guest for a Sakaarian makeover if you please."   
  
Someone was suddenly grabbing Alex's wrist.  
"This way." A guard, a large woman in royal guard clothes and a very mean looking face started leading Alex away.  
  
"Uh, what?" Callaway looked between them as she was pulled along behind the woman. "Loki." Alex worried as she was pulled away, Loki watching her with mild concern as they disappeared behind a corner.


	37. Rock bottom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have designed the dress for Alex but don't know how to put the image in so, sorry about that.

"Dress or tunic?"  
  
"I'm really not-"  
  
"Angled skirt dress."  
  
Alex had been led away, partly against her will, and shoved in a room with multiple mirrors and stacks and racks of clothing piled everywhere, some ripped and torn, others looking as good as new. A single woman... (alien? Her skin was neon pink, so Alex guessed alien) stood rifling through racks before having talked briefly with the Master and then immediately went to picking something out for the guest.  
  
"No." Kell, she was apparently named, flicked through multiple items. "No. No. Hmm, maybe..." The pink skinned alien held the dress up to Alex before instantly shaking her head and tossing it back on the rack. "No." She went back to searching. Alex didn't feel comfortable, and the silence other than hangars scraping against the racks they were hung on was not making things better. Then something crossed her mind.  
  
"Did you happen to dress Loki when he came through here?"  
  
"Loki? Long, lanky, slicked back raven hair and a stare that either freezes or melts your heart?" Kell paused for a moment, electric white eyes staring practically into Alex's soul.  
  
"That's the one." Came the nod.  
  
"Yes, I did." Kell turned back to her work. "Why? Would you like something similar?"  
  
"Um..."  
  
"Ah, yes, yes. This is perfect. With these too." Kell pulled up a dress and picked up a pair of shoes to go with it, shoving them both into Alex's arms. "Try this on." She pushed Alex towards a very thin screen to separate them. Not exactly having much choice, the mechanic went behind the screen and after some awkward tugging and pulling, managed to get the item onto her body to fit. It was practically a perfect fit for her. As were the shoes, as a matter of fact, though the ribbons that tied up around her legs were a struggle. Shaking her head and bundling her suit in her arms, she walked out under the inspecting Sakaarian's gaze who grinned and applauded. "Perfect. Or at least the dress is. Let me get the shoes."  
  
"I can do it myself, thank you!" Alex took a few steps back from the woman, trying not to blush, before catching a glimpse of herself in the full ceiling to floor mirror behind her and scrunching her face. "That's a lot of leg." Her eyes roamed over the dress. "And chest." She tugged on the material lining her chest to wrap around her shoulders in its style but failed to get the material to even budge a little off its resting place revealing the fact that yes, Alex was indeed a female and yes, she had some reasonable curves. She supposed the dress could have been much worse considering other things people around the palace had been wearing, and putting that thought to the side, she did a small spin in the wedge heels, not minding how the long back flowed out gently around her. And the colours matched her eyes nicely.  
  
"Are you enjoying yourself?" The alien the mechanic had forgotten about for a few seconds, spoke up, watching her admire herself in the mirror.  
  
"More than this morning," Alex answered honestly.  
  
"Come here. I'll do your makeup."  
  
"I don't want-"  
  
" _Sit_." The woman responded, and Alex was compelled to follow the order, albeit highly begrudgingly.  
  
  
Loki stared out of the arena window, sipping his goblet and vaguely interested in the early pre-fights that would normally warm up the crowds, two aliens he didn't care to categorise fighting it out and quickly losing his attention. He had managed to shake his audience for a few minutes, taking a second to stand back and relax his mind.  
  
Looking back at the party, he most certainly did not spit into his goblet when his eyes skimmed over and retreated back to Alex. He was a prince. He did not stare at anyone. He did not surprise snort into his drink. Anyone contradicting this theory should be executed. So, after definitely not choking on his drink and Alex, after searching the room finally found Loki standing and leaning on the glass window with one arm, she gingerly approached him, green, gold, and black dress flowing with her every movement, yet clinging to her in all the right places. It was the third dress he'd ever seen her in, one his own, the next from his mother, and now Sakaar.  
  
They didn't say anything as Callaway stood in front of him, managing to not let his eyes wander and instead pull them away to watch the fight again, Loki's hand fiddled with the goblet as a distraction.  
  
"How long have you been here?" Alex moved to see the fight.  
  
"Three days," Loki answered, tilting his head at the action he watched.  
  
"And you've already managed to make quite the impression around here." Alex glanced around the palace room, eyes flicking around the guests and the Grandmaster happily playing with the keyboard mixer in the centre of the room and bopping along. "Particularly with the Grandmaster, it seems." She caught the taller man glancing at Loki before smirking and looking away to his party.  
  
"I'm a persuasive person." Was the response given back. A moment of silence and Loki cleared his throat. "Your dress is nice."  
  
"It's pushing my boobs back where they came from," Alex stated bluntly. Loki snorted, not expecting the response, before covering with a small cough. "I'd prefer it if it covered more of my legs." Alex turned to him, gesturing to where the skirt cut off, one side at her thigh but the other on her knee due to the angle. Loki swallowed a gulp of his drink, eyes slowly roaming down the length of her dress and looking at her legs wrapped up in neat bows from the shoes she'd been gifted. "What do you think?" She asked, looking back up. Loki pulled his eyes away quickly.  
  
"I have no opinion." He brushed it off with a shrug. Alex rolled her eyes before twisting to whoever tapped her shoulder, seeing a waiter with a tray of drinks, the tray extended to her.  
  
"Thank you." Alex took one to be polite.  
  
"You're welcome, sweetheart." The alien dressed similarly to the guards, black metal armour with small flecks of colour in decoration, with a matching smile. "You're new, aren't you, darling?" His face was covered by three streaks of red paint on one cheek, diagonally tapering off towards his jawline.  
  
"That obvious?" Alex rubbed the back of her neck. Loki took notice of the two.  
  
"No, I just know I've never seen you before. I know all the faces around here. It's my speciality." The waiter chuckled softly with his smile. "Although I'm sure I will remember yours now."  
  
"And I'm sure you'll remember the Grandmaster needs another drink, Rowen." Loki's cool voice cut through the mood like glass. Alex looked back at him with a raised eyebrow at the sudden intrusion. The waiter stood a little straighter, clearing his throat and staring at Loki.  
  
"Of course." He bowed his head gently to Alex before wandering off in another direction.  
  
"What the hell was that?" Callaway furrowed her brow at the prince. Loki ignored her. She huffed, crossing her arms and looking down at the arena where the last blows of the battles were being dealt. "Is that guy made of rocks?" She squinted at Korg happily beating another contender into the dusk with a lighthearted smile on his face. Loki hummed. "I suppose he must be... rock hard." Alex grinned at the prince, who just grunted and didn't move his eyes off the fight, people beginning to cheer as the battle came to a close. "Oh come on. That one was funny." Alex pouted before turning and glaring out of the window with crossed arms again. "Screw you too, then." The mechanic grumbled.  
  
  
Time worked weird on Sakaar. Outside suddenly got very dark after a few hours, and a few people in the party were disappearing but a lot were still left behind as if the darkness outside wasn't the slightest bit of a hindrance to their partying and celebrations. Alex was tired though, stranded on yet another alien planet with no ideas how to get home, possibly never to see her father again... and stuck here with fucking God of Mischief.  
  
The Grandmaster showed her a guest room which she quickly stripped the sheets off the bed from, suspicious of activities that she'd seen in the darker corners of the palace and wary of the fact the door lock did not look secure in the slightest. Even with a chair propped against the door and the exhaustion of the day as well as the reality of everything around her settling in, Alex did not have any kind of easy sleep, and by the next morning, she knew very well she looked as tired as she felt, redoing some of her makeup with an eyeliner and smoothing out the dress that had already started to stretch out a little.  
  
The two newcomers found each other again early that day, Loki chatting idly with a few guests before dropping his conversation in favour of talking to Alex who approached him almost shyly, still wary that he was the only one here she really knew and almost trusted. She noticed Loki staring at her face, and furrowed her brow, crossing her arms defensively.  
"I didn't sleep very well." She mumbled out.  
  
"I slept perfectly soundly," Loki responded with a smile, both of them sitting on the sofa before them.  
  
"You would. You don't have a family waiting and probably worried sick about you back home after the God of Thunder kidnapped you to prove to the people of Asgard that his brother was masquerading as their father, who then died and released the Goddess of Death and then ended up on an alien planet millions of miles from home with no way to return back." Alex responded, crankily, before dropping her head in her hands. "Why do I let people just drag me into these things?" Her voice was muffled by her hands, and Loki's hand itched to reach out and assure her.... assure her of what he didn't know, so he didn't follow through on the action.  
  
"Intern."  
  
"You don't even call me Songbird anymore." Alex pulled her head up. Loki tilted his head at her, slightly confused. He'd assumed she didn't like the name after the reaction he got the first time he'd said it. "I don't remember the last time I sang something. I've been so in and out of things over the past few years I haven't even..." Picking up a goblet off a nearby waiters tray, she didn't care what it was and just downed a few gulps, the burning causing her to cough lightly.  
  
"I thought you didn't enjoy the name 'Songbird'." Loki sounded softer, watching her sort out her lungs.  
  
"Honestly, Loki, I don't mind it all that much. And it would almost be a comfort to hear it right now." She held the cup in her hands, thumb running over the decorative. "Man, I'm rambling. I need a notebook or something." She sighed into the cup, closing her eyes.  
  
The two were silent for a moment with each other, and then Loki suddenly got up and walked off. Alex didn't even bother to watch him walk away, taking smaller sips from the cup in hand instead and watching the men below in the arena clear up after a training session. Less than a few minutes later, she saw something in her peripherals, seeing Loki holding something in his hand.  
  
"Here." Loki held out the objects to her. Callaway glanced to realise it was a pen and notebook, albeit not without the regular Sakaarian flamboyant designs. The mechanic flicked her eyes between the notebook and the Norse god before slowly reaching out and slipping it from his hand, flicking through the clean pages before closing it again and smiling a little.  
  
"Three years worth of mourning, Loki. But its a start, I suppose." She shrugged one shoulder.  
  
"I'm not trying to apologise." Loki quickly countered, sitting down.  
  
"Sure you're not." Alex rolled her eyes, beginning to already scribble down her classic book introduction.


	38. Parlour trick

**Alex's POV - later that morning**  
Breakfast was... interesting to say the least. Loki knew where he was heading since he'd been here three days, and when my stomach began to play the sound of its people as I finished scribbling another page of song lyrics down in the notebook, he guided me through the palace to the banquet hall and kitchen. Sitting at a large long table filled with bowls and dishes of different foods and treats, obviously all the different colours of the rainbow and a lot of things I didn't recognise and most definitely didn't want to try. There was what looked like a fruit covered in spikes, and someone was eating it _with the spikes_. I don't want to sound bad when talking about alien customs but how the hell was that thing not bleeding right now.  
  
Loki picked a few different things onto his plate, some things recognisable as grapes and melon slices, others like the long stringy item and large leg of an animal I was sure wasn't from earth I did not want to question. Looking over the table, I picked out a bowl that seemed to be a bowl of normal noodles, and when I tried it, it tasted okay and not like it was going to kill me, so that was a win in my book.  
  
Loki ate with the grace of a prince, which is less than I could say for myself awkwardly trying to find the end of what appeared to be a single long noodle in the bowl before finally starting to eat. Loki glanced at me, then down into the bowl, and I watched him swallow another grape.  
  
"Uh... Intern?"  
  
"What?" I chewed on the noodle before I felt something against my face. Looking down, at the end of the noodle I was chewing was- "Fucking hell!" I yanked the noodle out of my mouth, practically tossing the little creature that was attached to it across the table with a squidge and spitting into the bowl in my hands. "Was I eating that the whole time? Was that its  _tail_?" I coughed and gagged into the bowl, clearing my throat and shaking in disgust before catching a glimpse at Loki doing a very shitty job at stifling his laughter, eyes going glossy, "Was that one of your pranks?" I growled at him, and that's when he completely lost his composure and laughed at me. Laughed at me. I glared and crossed my arms, growling again. "Loki."  
  
"I swear on my honour, it was not an illusion of mine." He coughed, hand on his chest, as he tried calming down, breathing deeply to stop himself laughing at my predicament. I wiped my tongue with my dress sleeve.  
  
"I think I'm gonna be sick." I swallowed gulps from the goblet in front of me, washing any taste of the noodle thing creature whatever out of my mouth for good. Wiping my mouth and setting the cup down, I looked at the asshole Prince. "What  _was_ that?"  
  
"A delicacy they name the 'noodle worm'. Apparently a very sought after dish here." He held a smirk on his face, but at least he'd stopped laughing.  
  
"Not by me, it's not." I shoved the bowl away, crossing my arms and sitting back with a scowl. Loki continued to grin. "Oh, I'm glad you're having fun(!)"  
  
"I have to say although I was not expecting that, it was rather amusing." He sipped from his own cup.  
  
"Shut up, Lokimotion."  
  
"Intern..."  
  
  
Okay, so breakfast was not a great start. I ended up eating the tail of an alien creature and Loki hadn't even bothered to stop or warn me like the mischevious prick he is. Not surprised, really, but still kinda hurt. The rest of the day was spent with him guiding me around the palace and helping me map the place out in my mind, a map that was quickly copied into my notebook, though he avoided going out into the streets and skirted past a few locked doors and rooms. I was becoming less annoyed with him as the day went on, and I knew he was trying to make me feel more comfortable about being here, but still, the knowledge that I was stranded here still stayed at the back of my mind as a constant lingering thought. But I suppose it wasn't as bad as I first thought... maybe.  
  
Night came quickly, and Loki helped me pick out food that didn't have gross aliens attached to the ends before heading off to his own bedroom and I headed back to my own room to take a shower in a shower that I spent at least ten minutes trying to figure out and not scald myself a new skin tone.  
  
I slept a little better but not a lot. It was the same as when I was kidnapped, not sleeping completely easy but being tired enough I eventually passed out. Changing into my dress for the third day running, I walked out into the hall and found Loki where he usually was, sitting on his own on the sofa overlooking the arena. The both of us nodded at each other with small mumbles of 'good morning' to each other before it went quiet.  
  
My hand fiddled with the side of the dress.  
"This dress is starting to stink," I mumbled more to myself than loud enough for conversation. Loki still heard me apparently, as after a snap of his fingers, the dress swished a bit in a sudden breeze, and suddenly it didn't smell anymore and looked as good as new. Even the ribbons around my legs seemed to be tied to a higher standard. I looked down at myself, then glanced at Loki with a chuckle. "I could use that spell a lot in my day-to-day life."  
  
"It has come in handy for me on more than one occasion." He responded, hands clasped in front of him and his eyes scanning the party behind us. I turned to look, seeing the rest of the party in their usual ridiculous outfits, and Loki looking in particular at the Grandmaster, who caught his gaze and winked at him. Loki quickly turned to the window overlooking the arena, and I turned back myself, furrowing my brow for a moment before shaking it off.  
  
The fight happening below us was only training, no bloodshed or caved in skulls as of yet. I winced as one alien was knocked off his feet by the other.  
"Do you really enjoy watching this stuff?"  
  
"I'll admit it wouldn't be my first choice of entertainment," The prince responded, tilting his head as he watched the action. My mind wandered, imagining Loki in his battle gear back on Earth, and how growing up with someone like Thor who seemed like a fighting fanatic must have been like for the younger brother back on Asgard. Then something else popped up in my mind as my thoughts returned to the palace.  
  
"You're a liar, by the way."  
  
"What?" Loki turned to me, distractedly.  
  
"I mean, I don't know why I'm surprised considering you're the God of Mischief and  _Lies_."  
  
"When did I lie to you?" He furrowed his brow, seeming genuinely confused and also slightly offended. I crossed my arms softly and looked at him.  
  
"That book you gave me when you kidnapped me. You said it was just something you'd read and had no use for." I raised an eyebrow, and he seemed to remember the moment with a soft nod of acknowledgement. "You never told me it was your favourite. You lied."  
  
"I didn't care for a Midgardian to know something so close to my heart." Loki crossed his own arms, eyes wandering back to the fight.  
  
"Aw. Loki showing his softie side?" I teased gently. Loki grunted but otherwise kept his gaze off me. I grinned. "Not such a frosty-knickers baddie, are you?"  
  
"Frosty-knickers?" His blue eyes stared me down with a huff. I honestly hadn't expected to ever hear the word 'knickers' being muttered from his mouth. "That's even worse than 'Lokimotion'." He continued, and I laughed.  
  
"Oh, on the contrary, I think it's  _much_ better." I grinned smugly at myself. Loki rolled his eyes.  
  
"Glad you're enjoying yourself." He glanced away, then his eyes flicked back to me. I felt my smile tug a little wider as I realised what he had said.  
  
"Sorry, Daddy Issues."  
  
"Intern." Loki pressed his lips into a line. I giggled and turned back to the fight. I felt him staring at the side of my face for a few more seconds at my smirking features. "If this is your revenge for this yesterday's events..."  
  
"I think I'm entitled to tease the God of Mischief just a little, aren't I?" I shrugged one shoulder with an innocent smile. He didn't disagree though or show any sign of arguing back, really. It was quiet between us other than the thumping music behind us for a few moments.  
  
"Your notebook was... interesting," Loki said suddenly. It seemed this was a day where the two of us were remembering that day on Asgard. "I didn't expect any gifts off of you."  
  
"I had no use for it any more. It was full."  
  
"It was not," Loki replied matter-of-factly. I rolled my eyes, clicking my tongue and looking back at him.  
  
"You had a huge library on Asgard. I practically promised your mother if I ever returned for longer than a day I would read every book in it." I smiled gently, and a smile seemed to tug at his own features.  
  
"Ahem." A voice behind me made me turn to see a familiar face.  
  
"Hey, Rowen." I smiled at the waiter, holding his regular drinks tray and his smile.  
  
"You remembered my name. I'm honoured." He bowed his head. The paint on his cheek had changed colour but was otherwise the same design as it had been before. "May I ask for yours since I didn't get to the last time we met, milady?"  
  
"Alex."  
  
"'Alex'." He echoed before extending the tray to me. I took a cup with a small thank you and he smiled again. "So, how are you settling in, Alex?"  
  
"It's... different," I responded, not trying to offend but also not trying to look as nervous as hell. "This place never seems to stop partying."  
  
"The fun never stops on Sakaar. Every day is another chance to get stuck in and experience new ways to enjoy yourself." He shrugged one shoulder, running his other hand through his dyed hair. "That sounded rather rehearsed."  
  
"It's a nice way to think about it, I suppose." I sipped from my cup. "And it doesn't sound that rehearsed. Your voice is quite welcoming."  
  
"Oh?" Rowen smirked, clearing his throat and standing up straighter.  _"I mean, it could sound more familiar if you wished."_ That voice was not Rowens. I quickly realised he was mimicking my own. And at a very high-level standard. I blinked.  _"No?"_  His voice still sounded like me. I would be lying if that didn't freak me out a little.  _"Maybe you'd prefer something **silkier**?"_ I glanced behind me, half-expecting it to have been the actual Loki that I heard, even though I saw Rowen's mouth moving with the words. Loki was just staring... or more glaring, at the two of us. I turned back to Rowen hearing footsteps come up behind me and a presence close to my back.  
  
"You're scaring the lady, Rowen." Loki's voice could cut glass.   
  
"It's only a simple parlour trick, your highness." The title sounded like an insult, Rowen looking Loki up and down without his usual smile.  
  
"Until you have something better than a simple parlour trick I suggest you move on with your assigned job, waiter." The prince responded and Rowen seemed to grit his teeth behind closed lips before giving me a tight smile and slight bow before spinning away and walking into the party again with a hidden scowl.   
  
"Can you stop doing that?" I spun around and glared at him. Loki looked away. "He's nice. He's trying to be a friend. You don't have to be so rude like that." He opened his mouth as if to argue, then closed it again, the expression on his face disappearing and reappearing with his brow furrowed. I would have asked about it if he didn't suddenly turn towards the doorway and say something over his shoulder.  
  
"Come."  
  
"A 'please' would be nice." I found myself reprimanding, slightly irritated.  
  
" _Please_?" He barely hesitated. That was different from any other time I'd asked for manners. But I brushed it off, following him through the multicoloured crowds and into another section of the palace.  
  
  
Loki led me through the corridors, dotted with Sakkarian guards and guests alike, until we reached a corridor that was empty, not even a single soldier in sight, and came upon a door we had bypassed before when I got the proper tour of the palace. Loki glanced back at me, as if he was checking I was still following him, and then turned his attention to the keypad beside the door, typing in numbers too fast for me to catch, and the silver arching doors slid open, and the two of us walked inside.  
  
I realised now why Loki was leading me here, as the doors slid closed behind us. I wouldn't label Sakaar as somewhere that would have a library, not to mention a fucking gigantic one with multiple levels and staircases tapering off to different sides like something out of Harry Potter.  
  
"You're really trying to make up for your three-year deception, aren't you?" I mumbled as I twirled in a circle, not even beginning to try and guess how many books were in this room.  
  
"I'm not apologising." Loki insisted, walking further into the room that was lit by electric lights and lamps emitting white and blue glowing lights that rotated through the spectrum of white to blue. I followed his path, walking towards one of the wall sleeves and running my fingers along the spines who's designs were absolutely no help whatsoever to telling what they were about or even what language they were in. But I didn't care. I found this all amazing. At least until I picked up a book at it screamed at me as I opened the first page. I slammed it shut and shoved it right back where it came from.  
  
"Yeah, okay, no." I pressed it back amongst the other books and took a few steps back. Loki was grinning like an idiot. "Oh, shut up."  
  
"I said nothing."  
  
"You were thinking loudly." I squinted at him.  
  
"Oh, you're a telepath now?" Loki raised an eyebrow, calmly.  
  
"Norse mythology books claim you are. Or that you have the ability to read minds." I shrugged, strolling along the shelf, fingers feeling all the different textures of the book covers.  
  
"I can, but it tires me out a lot when I do. I prefer not to use it anyway." The prince explained as he picked out a book himself, not a screaming one as he flicked open the first page, resting it on one forearm with his hand holding the cover. "Invasive, and I often can't control how much or how little I hear from someone's mind."  
  
"Oh, the burdens of being an all-powerful God." I put my hand to my hair daintily. Loki rolled his eyes again and went to sit down on one of the armchairs. I chuckled and turned back to the bookcase, eventually picking out something that didn't scream and hiss at me and was in a language I could understand, walking over to the sofas and sitting on the opposite end of the one Loki was sat close to, opening the book in my lap and starting to read quietly.


	39. Bambi

The quiet of a library was something Alex didn't realise she needed so badly. Settling down with a book in her lap and relaxing into the luxury of a sofa that had probably been thrown away somewhere in the cosmos to turn up here with the God of Mischief across the room was a comfort that relaxed her after the stress of the last few days. The anxieties of being stuck on an alien planet and leaving her own and her family behind were quickly whisked from her mind as the words from the fantasy novel she'd picked out filled her mind.  
  
But it couldn't last forever. As her stomach rumbled for lunch she was pulled out of the world of mystery and magic to glance across at where Loki was calmly reading on the armchair, licking his finger to turn the page with as much grace as would be expected of a prince. But he looked so calm now compared to his usual stoic or blank expression he tried to put forward to everyone, almost as if he was just sat there in his cat form, perfectly relaxed and happy.  
  
"You're staring, Intern." Loki caused Alex to blink and look back down at her book.  
  
"Just thinking." She turned a page, regardless of the fact she hadn't finished her chapter.  
  
"About?" Loki asked gently, not looking up from his own book as he read, legs crossed at the ankle and posture straight.  
  
"I miss my family," Callaway mumbled. Loki's eyes flicked up a little from the book. "And I'm probably never going to see them again." She added, shifting her position on the sofa to drag her legs to sit under her body.  
  
"Can't you use your mobile device?"  
  
"It's dead. And even if it wasn't, I highly doubt I can get a signal from an alien planet millions of miles away from my own." Alex responded, marking the mage she was at before putting it on the decorative coffee table carefully. "I'm hungry." Loki closed his own book, placing it down beside Alex's before standing.  
  
"Shall we go to the hall?" He straightened out his tunic briefly and Alex stood up with a nod.  
  
  
Leaving the library possibly wasn't the best idea, especially as the exact time they decided to enter the dining hall was the exact time yet another party fired up in the room, loud pulsing music and flashing lights starting up harsher than normal and much more dizzying to the eye. Loki hadn't realised Alex was no longer following him until he reached the eating table, and turned to see Alex caught between a group of partying Sakaarians being thrown around between them in some sort of native dance he was unfamiliar with. He told himself he wouldn't have rushed over so quickly if it was only Alex being thrown around a little, but when he saw the fear in her eyes and the sudden stiffness of her body in the second their eyes passed one another, he sped over, taking her hand and swiftly pulling her out of the dancing circle and into a -somehow- clear space.  
  
"Intern?" Loki snapped his fingers in front of her face as she looked at him, eyes wide with a sudden gaze and her breathing a little more laboured than normal. He recognised it as the same state she'd been in when she had a nightmare. Anxious problems, he surmised, heading to the far end of the table with a firm grip on Alex's wrist and pulling out two chairs, sitting Callaway on one and sitting a metre away on the second. "Intern." He called again, raising his volume slightly over the music, and Alex looked at him, breathing deeply and getting as much control over herself as she could manage.  
  
"I'm okay." She nodded, eyes darting around a little before Loki clicked his fingers again and she looked back at him. "It was just a bit... sudden." Her breathing was calming down, and Loki's fingers still holding her wrist could feel her human pulse slowing down. It occurred to him once again how warm her skin was against his, being naturally a few degrees colder due to his heritage, and the feeling of her speeding pulse beneath his fingers a strange hypnotic rhythm to him.  
  
Ice blue eyes stared into emerald green, and the two trapped themselves in a sudden gaze. Loki could have sworn her pulse sped up a fraction again, but was confused since Alex was no longer feeling anxiety towards the party-goers. His eyes narrowed a little, and Alex broke the gaze, looking away to the table, apparently gaining her appetite back. She pulled her wrist to grab at a bowl but found it trapped in Loki's hold. After their eyes met a second time, he released his grip and let her get something to eat, as well as picking out food for himself, but continued to have a small feeling of confusion itch at the back of his head throughout the meal.   
  
  
Later in the day, the two found themselves back at the arranged sofas and chairs, the idea of the library abandoned for another day. Loki was certain no one else used it anyway except for the Grandmaster. And stealing the codes had been worth a little more skill than he guessed a normal Sakaarian would possess.  
  
Alex was writing in her notebook again, sitting on the sofa with her legs crossed over one another, probably showing off a little more leg than she realised, and to keep his eyes off her Loki reached for a goblet on a passing tray.  
"Can I get one?" The mechanic spoke up.  
  
"There's a waiter behind you." Loki gestured behind her, sitting on the end of the same sofa she sat on.  
  
"Aw. Come on, Bambi. Play nice." She pouted dramatically at him. He paused midway to taking a sip of the wine.  
  
"Have some new inventive titles for me, Intern?" He raised an eyebrow, almost humoured by her efforts.  
  
"Oh yeah. I've got a whole new list in the making, just for you." She tapped the notebook page and he shook his head, standing up and walking over to the arena window, staring down. "Did you know 'Loki' means 'spring onions' in Latvian?" She said with a grin far too wide to be anything but mocking. "And 'Lokki' means 'Seagull' in Finnish, too." She added, making Loki roll his eyes as subtly as he could manage.  
  
"I would ask that you don't mock me but I know I would only be tempting you further." He tapped his fingers on the edge of the goblet, mumbling.  
  
"Yep." She nodded proudly before standing up off the sofa. "Any names you'd like to add to the list?" She wandered over to his side.  
  
"And help you ridicule me further? Hardly."  
  
"Not like last time where you crossed a few out and put down your own suggestions?" She raised an eyebrow. The god grunted. "Come on. You've got to have a few things you want me to call you in that head, still. You don't expect me to believe you don't want to be called 'My King' or 'Midgard's Saviour'."  
  
"You remember those?" He furrowed his brow, looking at her.  
  
"Of course I do." She looked at him as if it was obvious she would remember. Loki internalised his surprise so it would not show on his face. "You managed to get me to call you 'Sir' once in those entire three weeks we were in that bunker." She reminded him, and his mouth twitched into a smile in remembrance of that day. He glanced back at her, seeing her looking back at him with a questioning look, before holding his hand out, clearing his throat. Alex smirked, handing over the notebook which he quickly took and carefully scribbled something inside. It took a few seconds of patient waiting before the notebook was back in her hands and she read the new addition to the list.  
  
'𝑀𝒾𝓈𝒸𝒽𝒾𝑒𝒻'  
  
"Aw."  
  
"Quiet," Loki demanded, eyes on the glass and not on the human. Alex hummed in thought, looking to the arena.  
  
"Maybe if you turned into a cat again, I'd call you that." The offer was clearly made. Loki had no response. Not even a twitch or eye flicker. "That's a no on the feline appearance, then." She mumbled, looking down at the notepad, flicking over to a new page. "Not surprised. I'd hate to find out what would happen to you if a Sakaarian found you like that."  
  
"Nothing stranger than what I've already partaken in on this planet, I'm sure." The god pulled on his tunic collar, shifting slightly.   
  
"You had three days before I showed up. What were you doing for those three days that are 'stranger things'?" The mechanic raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Strange things that are better left unshared."  
  
"Who's not sharing?" Alex jumped as the Grandmaster once again demonstrated his apparent teleporting ability to appear directly between the two. "Sharing is caring around these parts. But in a sudden serious turn of events, Loki, I want to ask for your assistance with a little problem I'm having." He turned swiftly to the Prince. "I have a little group over in the higher levels that need some entertaining and I was wondering if you'd help the poor little Grandmaster out with that? A few stories would probably settle them all down." The Master grinned at the god, who glanced between the man and the girl before making his decision.  
  
"Of course." He bowed his head politely to both. "Intern." He nodded at Alex before disappearing off in a certain direction of the party, leaving the girl and the Master alone.  
  
"Glad to see you both settling in okay. A night of passion go well?"  
  
"No, no. No passion. No nights. No... whatever you said." Alex shook her head with a face. "There's nothing there. Trust me."  
  
"You shouldn't try to lie to someone with telepathic tendencies, Alex." He tapped his temple. Alex nearly choked on her spit as he said her name. She never recalled telling him her name. Then she registered what he had said. "There's something there. Even someone without abilities like that can sense it. I've seen a lot of different types of attraction, believe me, I know what it looks like." He grinned widely, blinking a few times as if he forgot the end of his sentence before looking off in the direction Loki disappeared to. "Just a shame I didn't quite manage to catch leather pants before you did. I thought we were really going somewhere that night."  
  
"What?" Alex looked at him, brow furrowed.  
  
"Also, you should probably think about changing the outfit. That ensemble is so three days ago." He looked her up and down as he began to walk away and out of the conversation.  
  
"I literally got given it three days ag- and he's gone." Alex gave a flat look to the crowd not far from her. Giving a defeated sigh and a roll of her eyes, she picked up her notebook again and sat down on the sofa, scribbling down a few more ideas for names and random scribblings of the Intern.


	40. Battery

**Alex's POV - An hour later**  
Loki returned soundlessly. I didn't even know he had come back until I moved uncomfortably in my sitting position to see him at the end of the sofa with a book. I did not jump or flinch when I realised he was there, and that smirk on Loki's face was not because I just got jumpscared by the silent-ass god in green.  
  
Lunch passed as normal. I didn't try any food other than what I was sure was relatively normal and wouldn't kill me on eating, and Loki seemed to be of the same mind and be sticking to certain items across the table, though his palette was a little further spread than mine. I did steal a grape from his plate when he turned to reach for a goblet, and though he looked at his plate in confusion and looked at me because of course, he would fucking notice that, he didn't complain, and instead just replaced it with another.  
  
"I need the bathroom," I announced quietly before standing, heading in the direction of my own room, away from the table. I knew there was probably a different bathroom around here that was closer than my bedroom. But no thanks. I'd rather save myself from the 'typically Sakaarian' kind of trauma I may somehow take a wrong turn and walk in on for as long as I can. I had already seen a few shifty things around this place in some of the darker corners, and sometimes just on random coffee tables because apparently everyone around here but me enjoyed 'sharing', as the Grandmaster had so eloquently put it. But I tried not to let it bother me. It was the last thing I should have been worrying about up here. Plus, I had had my own brand of 'fun' in college, so I couldn't really judge too hard.  
  
Returning to the table, Loki was engrossed in his meal and smiling delicately at those two girls I had seen him with on the first day here, giggling together as he sent them his signature smirk. I tried not to squish the piece of meat between my fingers at the feeling of annoyance that itched the back of my neck for some reason. Tossing the meat in my mouth, I pulled my notebook towards me and noted more song lyrics down on the page, continuing to eat. Loki seemed to be looking at the notebook, not to read it but just as if something was wrong with it. I furrowed my brow but ignored him.  
  
I soon figured out why he'd been giving it that look. As, once the meal was over, he was pulled away by the two girls to 'finally finish his story about the Bifrost thingy' and I flicked forwards a few pages to see a page with a list of words and numbers.  
  
 _Library >  1-12-5-24-1-14-4-18-1  
Dress chambers>  18-1-22-9-19-8-9-14-7  
Indoor (private) gardens> 15-21-18 16-12-1-3-5  
Private Quarters> 12-15-11-9 15-4-9-14-19-15-14_  
  
They were... passwords? For different rooms in the palace?  
  
I flicked back to my hastily sketched map on the front pages. There were markers in initials that I matched to Loki's handwriting. He had marked the rooms on my map for me? Wow.  
  
I glanced up to where he was clearly enjoying the attention of the crowd that had gathered around him, laughing and joking and drinking his time away. The pages of my notebook began to crinkle as my grip tightened and I didn't realise until I'd nearly ripped the map before straightening the pages out and taking a breath. Why was the attention he got bothering me so much? Was it down to him just acting like the last three years never happened? Probably.  
  
I brushed it off, going back to writing lyrics and watching the arena every so often. The day flew by like nothing, Loki never shaking his crowd, not even through dinner and when I packed up to go back to my room.  
  
Washing off the thick makeup in the bathroom sink, I took a breath. I was actually growing to like the out-there fashion and appearances people had on this planet. And I hadn't missed the glances I had been receiving from people when I walked into the room in this hugging dress and colouring makeup. I was kind of starting to like it. People here didn't know me like people on earth knew me, they weren't looking at me because I was the daughter of a famous billionaire. They just knew me as a guest from Earth with a sharp tongue who liked reading and writing random things down in a sketchbook. And also as the girl who freaked out when she ate a noodleworm. I'd prefer not to remember that one. But still, up here, I was free from past judgement and appearances, and I could relax and be who I wanted up here, and no one would care or be none the wiser of who I used to be.  
  
I suppose that included Loki, too. I had come a long way since three years ago.  
  
A knock on my door perked my head up from the sink. Wiping my face down with a towel, I walked over and unlocked the door, not expecting to see the God standing there with a determined look in his eye.  
  
I raised an eyebrow. "Loki?"  
  
"Hand me your phone." He demanded.  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
"Hand me your phone, Intern." He demanded again, blue eyes staring me down. I blinked, backing into my room and looking at the pile of clothes that was my blue and black suit, pulling out my phone from a pocket and bringing it back over.  
  
"It's dead." I shrugged, holding it out. Loki took it in a firm grasp. "What are you..?" He shushed me with a wave of his hand, closing his eyes and letting a green glow eminate from his palm and into my phone. He reopened his eyes and held the phone out to me, its screen lit up with the battery charged. I took it curiously, and the device suddenly buzzed to life in my hand, notifications of multiple missed calls and texts rushing through to the screen, almost causing it to crash. That's when I noticed the signal. I had signal. "You... you just..." I looked up at the God.  
  
"Goodnight, Intern." He bowed his head before disappearing down the hall without another word. I stared after him as he turned a corner and left my sight. I slowly closed the door to my room, turning round and leaning my back against the door, unlocking my phone and scrolling through my contacts, picking the first number I could think of in this new rush of an opportunity.  
  
They picked up on the first ring. "Dad?"  
  
 _"Alex!"_ I don't think I'd ever been happier to be shouted at by my parent in my life.  _"Alexandra Jessica Callaway Stark!"_ Tony continued to scream at me. I almost laughed, feeling somewhat hysterical.  _"Where the hell have you been? I, your mother, and the team have been so fucking worried about you! Why didn't you answer my calls or texts? I don't recall you having a reason to be mad at me this time."_ I slid my back down the door, sitting on the floor and pulling my legs up to my chest.  _"Alex, where the hell are you?"_ I finally got my voice to work, letting out a relieved laugh.  
  
"Trust me when I say you are never going to believe me."  
  
  
 **The next day**  
 _"So what's it like? Sakaar?"_  
  
"Bright. Very bright. Colours everywhere. And I do mean everywhere. They could at least pick a scheme." I walked through the hallways, phone in hand, displaying my face in the corner and a teenage boy face on the screen. "Parties every day and night, extravagant clothes every evening. Feels like dad's younger years."  
  
 _"Mr Stark said I kind of acted like him in his younger years with putting that vlog up on his servers."_  The boy responded meekly, rubbing the back of his neck.  
  
"Aw. Your little Spider-Man vlog where you got to meet all the big-time superheroes and punch the crap out of Steve?" I teased the little Peter Parker softly, sitting down on the end of the arena viewing sofa. "Do you recognise the name Rosaline Dubenich, by the way?"  
  
 _"Uh... sounds familiar."_  
  
"Well, she was at MIT with me and she also knows your secret." I told him. Peter blanched. "Don't worry. Her lips are sealed. But she lives in your area - red hair, electric blue eyes, confidence that could match up to my dad's should they ever formally meet?"  
  
 _"I think I know her."_  Peter looked to the side as he thought hard.  
  
"Yeah. If you bump into her when you're walking around town, trust she has your Spider Boy interests at heart. She sounded like she might be interested in studying that suit of yours if she got the chance. I'm sure she'd have a few things to say about it." I chuckled softly before noticing an admirer. I smirked at him. "Oop. Getting stared at by tall, dark and psycho. Say hey, Peter." I flipped the phone round so the camera faced Loki's direction as he approached us.  
  
 _"Hey, Mr Loki!"_  Peter waved on his end. Loki ignored him, leaning one arm on the window glass and looking into the arena.  
  
I huffed and turned the camera back around. "Ignore him. He's being a broody bitch." I tutted before settling back onto the sofa. "How's being the Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-Man going for you?"  
  
 _"Mr Stark's suit is so awesome. Its got all these things that I didn't know could fit in here, and there's KAREN and Ned and its like this whole new vision to take in and yet still in the same old neighbourhood."_ Peter rambled quickly with the energy of a small puppy.  _"Mr Stark also said you had some design ideas?"_  
  
"Yeah. I was working on just a few minor touch-ups before being taken to an alien planet by force." My eyes flicked to Loki before back to the screen. "You can find them on the STARK Server if you want a quick sneak peek."  
  
 _"Can I?"_ Peter's blue eyes lit up like a spark. I nodded.  _"Okay, I'll pull it up now."_ His face half disappeared on screen. I heard the taps of computer keys through my phone speakers before he backed up in his chair, eyes wide and staring at his screen.  _"'Minor touch-ups'? These are amazing!"_  
  
"Well, your suit inspired a few things for my own and so I thought I'd return the favour. Plus, its good to have side projects."  
  
 _"These are so cool."_  He was practically giddy, finally peeling his eyes away to look at me.  _"You really designed these? Not that I think you wouldn't be able to because, why wouldn't you, you're Alex Stark- Callaway. Mr Stark said you preferred 'Callaway'. And you went to MIT twice and you-"_  
  
"Peter, take a breath, sweetie. You'll pass out." I chuckled gently. He stopped himself, visibly taking a breath in and out.  
  
 _"Sorry."_  
  
"Don't apologise." My eyes drifted back to Loki, who quickly glanced away from me, but not before I caught the glare he had been aiming my way as he stared at my phone. "I think I should probably go now. Or Loki might cut my phone off like an angry parent by the way he's glaring at us."  
  
 _"Before you go..."_  Peter stopped me as my finger hovered over the 'end call' button. He bit his lip, head inclining as he fiddled with his earphones in his lap.  _"Can you tell Mr Loki that I like his helmet?"_ He looked up sheepishly.  
  
"Sure, Peter. Skype you later." I waved before finally hanging up and dropping my phone into my lap. "Peter said he likes your helmet. The one that makes you look like a gay reindeer."  
  
"It does not." His head snapped to me. I smirked, crossing my arms. He looked to be visibly holding back a sigh, looking back at the arena. "I will not fall into this trap of teasing, Intern."  
  
"Sure thing, Spring Onions."


	41. Gardens

**3rd Person POV - later that day - Palace Gardens**  
Alexandra walked around the room, cursing herself for not having come in here sooner. Loki had marked the 'gardens' on her map, and Alex had no idea what to expect from the Sakaarian standards of gardens but was pleasantly surprised when she typed in the code and entered what was practically a gigantic greenhouse, only less humid.  
  
The room was circular. There was a thin strip of flooring acting as a walkway that went around the whole room, then led up a straight path in the centre, in the gaps that weren't the path, plots of dirt held high standing trees that were green with simple yet odd designs of blue and purple swirling around their trunks and leaves, strangely colouring their blossoms or fruits. But the room lighting was fairly clinical, giving everything a frosted feel, especially with the touch lower temperature than it was outside the room.  
  
Not really thinking about the possibility of being poisoned, Alex reached out to a low hanging branch, running her fingers along the rough yet smooth surface of the bark and the blossom that was similar to a cherry tree flower hanging from the end. So entranced by the tree, she did not hear the room to the door opening, or quiet paws approaching. Only to jump when her leg was nudged.  
  
"Holy fuck!" She swung around, ready to hit whoever was about to attack her when she suddenly stopped herself. There was nothing in front of her, and when something touched her leg again, her head fell down to the floor to see a small fuzzy black cat staring up at her, mischief glinting in its bold forest green eyes. Alex set her jaw, annoyed at the sudden adrenaline spike. "Don't do that, you asshole!" She grumbled down at him before the cat began to shift its shape and turn into its natural form of a cheeky Asgardian. Loki tried his hardest to keep a smirk off his face, he truly did, but he soon failed as he took in her pouting expression and let it slip through onto his lips. Alex gave an unimpressed look, arms folding. "Why were you a cat, anyway?" She turned herself back to the tree she had been previously admiring.  
  
"I had to slip away from my adoring audience somehow." Came his calm retort, still smirking widely. "I've lost count of how many times I've recalled falling off the Rainbow Bridge."  
  
"Aw. Must be so difficult having a crowd follow you and beg for your attention all the time and for you to be loved and admired by people who would happily call you their King if you continued to tell them tales." Alex ran her fingers over the blossom. The god furrowed his brow.  
  
"What's this sudden attitude I detect, Intern?" Loki asked. Alex's fingers paused in their caress, and the god could visibly see her body tense up ever so slightly.  
  
"You look like you've found your kind of people here, Loki." The mechanic gave him a tight smile and nod. "You're practically a Prince of Asgard again." She moved away from the tree, walking further up the metal pathway and studying the trees and bushes adorning the dirt plot. He waited a moment, hands clasping behind his back.  
  
"I haven't been a Prince of Asgard for a long time, Intern." Loki followed her walk.  
  
"Yeah, because you've been prancing around as Odin for the last three years having the time of your life." She came to a stop in front of another bush, kneeling down to study the roses. "You got everything you wanted. And now you do again, just on a different planet this time."  
  
Loki looked down to the floor. "I don't have everything I want. I can't have everything I want." He whispered to quiet for her to detect before raising his volume. "What do  _you_  want, Intern?"  
  
"I don't know anymore, Loki. Okay? I don't know." She snapped, eyes on the roses as she carefully studied it like a new piece of metal on her lab projects. Loki was confused. She was acting much unlike her happy mood from this morning. "I spent the last three years getting shoved around and dragged in and out of different conflicts and battles before finally being stranded on a foreign planet and now I don't know what I want anymore." The girl shrugged, standing up and walking towards a bench in the centre of the room. "I'm glad I can talk to dad and everyone back home -thank you by the way- but it's not the same as being on the same planet as them. I miss the interaction. I miss home." She sat herself down, pulling dress to sit properly over her leg, trying to move the slit so her legs weren't chilly in the cooler air.  
  
"I'm afraid that is something I cannot do much about." Loki raised his head.  
  
Alex rested her chin on her hand, humming. "That's funny."  
  
"What is?" He tilted his head.  
  
"You admitting that you can't do something." She was smiling faintly. Loki felt a little better about her mood at that sight.  
  
He approached the bench she sat on. "There are a great many things I can't do, or that are out of my control, as much as I wish them to not be." Easing himself onto the bench, he rested his forearms on his knees, hunching slightly. "Events, time, ...feelings." He stopped his leg from starting to bounce with some concentration. "Many things."  
  
A beat of silence passed.  
  
"Its quiet in here. Somehow." The mechanic huffed, looking around the room. Loki had to admit, not hearing thumping music for one moment was a much-needed moment. "It's nice."  
  
"Reminds me of the Asgard Gardens." The prince replied, turning a little to Alex. "Did you ever see them?"  
  
"No. Your mother was going to show me, but then the Dark Elves turned up. She told me it was one of your favourite places in the palace, alongside the library." Alex played with her hands in her lap before looking up. "I can understand why if this is what they looked like." She chuckled softly, eyes glinting with inspiration. Loki spent a few seconds looking at her, at that look in her eyes that she'd shown when in the library or that night when they danced with each other. He had an idea, sitting up straighter on the bench.  
  
"They looked more like this." The Prince waved his hand in a wide swipe of the air, making Alex furrow her brow, before realising that the room was slowly being taken over by a line of shimmering gold, and the very shape and fabric of the room was being changed in a sweep of magic.  
  
Large trees in varieties of known and unknown species spread across the room, stretching and twirling branches to create distinct shadows across the room. The ground spread with fresh green grass, lining itself with bushes and shrubs with flowers and plants all growing together. Everything took on a golden shimmer, as was usual with just about anything on Asgard. It was different than the Sakaarian plants, no fancy designs swirling around, and the plants looked far less dangerous and exotic.  
  
Loki stood up from the bench. "Walk with me?" Alex stood beside him, as they started walking through the illusion of Asgard's very own gardens, looking as if the room they stood in stretched on for miles, but Alex knew she would soon walk into a wall regardless of what her eyes were telling her.  
  
"You have a damn detailed memory." She said, letting her eyes wander around. She could even see the image of the palace in the distance of the fields. It was like she truly was back on Asgard with the prince.  
  
"I spent a lot of time in the gardens. Unlike Thor who spent his time on the training grounds or in the grand halls." Loki said as they walked, the grass beneath their path almost real.  
  
"I would have preferred this too." She agreed quietly. Loki smiled gently.  
  
"Not many on Asgard would share the same idea." He told her. Alex could believe that from what she had seen and heard from Thor. They came to a stop an inch before a wall would block their own path, sighing and watching as the sun gently set in the distance of the fields, leaving everything in a shimmering warmth of light. "But yes, that is the comparison." Loki cut the dream short, another wave of his arm, and everything in the room dissolved to the clinical surroundings she knew was much more real than the vision. She truly felt envious of Loki's powers to be able to conjure such a thing. That brought a question to mind.  
  
"Did you use to do that in your cell?"  
  
"Do what?" Loki walked back to the benches with her.  
  
"Put up the illusion of the gardens? Or the library?"  
  
"I'd rather not talk about my time there." The two stood in the centre of the room, the familiar chill on their skin, a comfort to Loki, a slight refreshment to Alex. They were quiet for a few moments more before Loki breathed in. "Are you hungry?"  
  
"No." Alex shook her head, walking back to a bench and sitting. "I like it in here." She looked like she was happy sitting, then changed her mind and turned herself longways, lying on her back, spread across the bench. "Should bring that book from the library in here to read." She added with a small mumble, looking straight up at the ceiling which was again, stark white, almost as if snow was about to fall down and cover the room in a frost blanket.  
  
Loki watched her relaxed form on the bench. Her attitude from before had disappeared completely. He would like to think that was because of himself but was not so full of himself to assume so. The prince looked at the bench across from her, form shrinking down into his fuzzy black state and hopping up onto the free bench with a short 'meow', catching the brunette's attention. She turned her head, chuckling gently, resting her forearm across her forehead. "Ever a little ball of Mischief." She smiled softly. A shimmer and Loki was back to human form.  
  
"The only thing missing is a Songbird." He told her, quietly, almost bashfully. Alex understood his implication, the smile disappearing from her face for a moment, before staring at the ceiling and chuckling again.  
  
"Maybe later." Her response came. Loki smiled again at her answer, recalling the last song she heard fall from her lips, and how she herself must have been reminded of that same night when she was kidnapped. And the idea that she remembered this only grew stronger when Loki picked up on a new sound in the otherwise fairly silent room. A humming. A small tune being hummed by the mechanic across the way, a tune Loki recognised as the one from the very same night, slow and gentle, almost a lullaby.   
  
Before he knew what came over him, Loki found himself lying in a similar fashion to Alex, folding his arms over his chest and looking up at the white ceiling, listening to her gentle tune that nearly lulled him to sleep. But he willed himself to stay awake as long as possible so he could listen to her.


	42. Sleepyhead

**The next morning - Loki's POV**  
Stepping out of the shower adorning my room and dressing in another Sakaarian outfit that was practically the same as my previous outfit, just a slight colour change of the inside of my cape, I walked out of my room and further into this 'palace'. The music was loud and pulsing as usual, different Sakaarians seemed to pass through the palace every day, save for a few including the Grandmaster that usually stuck around. It was mainly the groups that stuck together in here. But I was normally one of the first ones in here.  
  
So, imagine my surprise when I saw Songbird here before me, sitting at the breakfast table surrounded by Sakaarians merrily chatting and dancing. And Rowen was there, leaning on the table, holding his regular waiter's tray and talking to Alex, standing particularly close to her chair. They seemed to be growing fairly close as of late, and now Alex was smiling and laughing with him the same way I recognised as she did with me. That giggle that would often come around in times of snark between the two of us where she did not expect me to keep up with her wit.  
  
I felt my fist tense up for a moment.  
  
I flicked my wrist.  
  
Out of the goblets set on the tray that Rowen regularly carried in his palm, came sets of small black snakes.  
  
Alexandra was the first to notice, yelling in surprise, and Rowen dropped the tray to the floor completely, cups crashing on the ground with a clatter. Gasps came from the group before a shimmer of green took away the slithering snakes in a flash. There was silence, and then group burst into raucous laughter, and Alex and Rowen shared a confused look before Alex's emerald eyes fell on me across the hall. She stared at me for a long moment, something I recognised as disapproval in her eyes, then she took me by surprise and began giggling along with the rest of the group surrounding her. Rowen shared a soft yet awkward chuckle, brushing his hands on his sides and reaching to pick up the goblets and tray.  
  
A smirk twisted the corner of my mouth upwards. And it only increased when my Songbird beckoned me over towards her and the group, and I followed her direction to join them.  
  
"Ah, your Majesty. Glad you could join us." Rowen's tense jaw and too-wide smile were questionable. The twins in golden dresses and matching crimson facepaint sat behind him giggled together.  
  
"Why have you been hiding this little dream away from us?" The gruff tone of what I assumed was a male behind the lace headdress and leather hooded robe questioned, the figure to Alex's left draped himself in a chair like a king in a throne. Even without being able to see its eyes, I could practically feel them burning into the Songbird.  
  
"I wasn't aware you were so interested in Miss Alex," I responded calmly with a matching smile. The girl in question gave me an expression I could read was questioning my address of 'Miss Alex' rather than something else. I didn't answer.  
  
"Keep telling us about the Earth battle!" The twins whined in unison. Battle? "You were up on the mini hovership thingy way up in the sky and then you just fell?"  
  
"I got knocked straight off it. Fell right down towards the floor." She made a falling motion with her hands until her palm hit an invisible floor. "But, before I hit the floor, something caught me."  
  
"What caught you?" The masked man leaned closer.  
  
"I feel as though Miss Alex would want to eat breakfast now," I spoke up to cut the story off. I was aware of the answer, and I was positive Alex wasn't actually enjoying this close attention with everyone around her.  
  
"No, I'm good." Alex shrugged me off. I blinked, confused.  
  
"No?"  
  
She shrugged again. "I'm good. I already ate." She added a simple smile.  
  
"Ah," I said. The group had all by now turned to face me, and I felt indignation flare at my cheeks at the sudden dismissal. "Would... you not like to join me in the library or gardens then?" I tilted my head in inquiry.  
  
"I'm good here, thanks, Loki." She shrugged, folding her arms over her chest that she had previously complained was tightly pressing into herself because of the dress she was selected.  
  
"Aleeeeex." Rowen's voice brought us back to the conversation at hand. "Tell us the rest. What caught you from falling? Another ship?" He inched closer. I felt my hand twitch but kept my magic in check this time.  
  
"I don't know what it was exactly." Her eyes fell on me. The softness I had come to find comfort in returned to her gaze, as she looked directly at me and no one else. "All I know is I was lucky to have it. And I sometimes wonder what I did to deserve it." I understood why she was looking at me. I just hoped no one else at the table caught onto the knowing gaze we shared. And I wondered how she could possibly question if she deserved to be saved that day. "But, after I was caught by whatever it was, I joined my friends back to the battleground and back into the fight to defend my home." She returned to sharing the story, eyes moving away from me and to her adoring crowd.  
  
I took a breath in, deciding my presence was no longer needed or wanted and turned to walk out of the hall to another section of the palace where I would be more appreciated.  
  
  
It was a number of hours before the library door opened to another guest, and I did not need to look up from my book to recognise who had walked in, standing in front of the coffee table by the sofas, and stood silent for a moment as the doors slid closed behind her.  
"You're not... sulking, are you?" Songbird crossed her arms.  
  
"A prince does not sulk," I replied, flicking over the next page in my hardback. It was in exactly the place I had left it, as was Alex's own book on the table. I was not surprised by that fact, this was not a room considered for 'fun'.  
  
"You're sulking." She decided as she rounded the coffee table, picking up her own book and dropping onto the opposite end of the sofa, opening to her last marked page.  
  
"It seems you found yourself a group of your own, Songbird."  
  
"I woke up early." Came the soft reply.  _'And you weren't there'_ went unsaid, but I felt that was the implication she would have added if she had been just a little braver. I finally peeled my eyes off the words on the page to look at her. Properly. And I almost struck myself when I recognised something in her face that I did not this morning.  
  
"You look tired."  
  
"Thanks. Girls love hearing that." She huffed, reading.  
  
"You look how you did when..." I trailed off as the thought came to mind. Alex's eyes paused briefly where she was reading, before starting again in hopes I didn't notice. I did. "Did you wake up restfully, this morning?" I asked her, carefully. She looked away, confirming my suspicion. It had not been a restful wake, at all. "Would you like to talk about-"  
  
"No." Her grip tightened on the book, and she refused to look at me.  
  
"As you wish." I returned to my own book, legs crossed and leaning back on the sofa.  
  
The silence lasted a while, no clocks on this planet was not helpful for timekeeping, but a movement from Alex's side of the sofa made me look. Her eyes were slipping shut, even though she was clearly fighting it.  
  
"Would you like to return to your room, Songbird?" My voice, regardless of how soft I tried making it, still cut through the silence like glass.  
  
"Mm?" She rubbed her face, black cream makeup smudging out of place just slightly on her left eye. "No. 'S nice, here." She replied in a mumble, head leaning back against the back of the sofa as her eyes fell closed completely. The book in her lap fell closed over her thumb, soon to permanently make a mark in the pages.   
  
I dragged my eyes back to my own page and away from her sleeping form, reading at least two chapters before feeling a weight slowly sink onto my shoulder. I blinked, looking to see the little lab girl's head resting on my shoulder, body slumped in unconsciousness. The book in her lap had fallen forgotten to the floor, and her hair was brushed over her face, hiding the smudged makeup and closed eyes.  
  
I gently brushed the hair from her face, confirming she was still asleep, and gently moving her so she could be sitting more comfortably, but in doing so, turned her too much, and her weight fell into my lap, head resting against my thigh. I tensed, watching silently for any sign she was waking up, and after a few seconds of nothing but me holding my arms in the air as if backing away from an angered brother, I studied her form now lying down on the sofa, her head resting gently in my lap, and looking the picture of pure innocence. I swallowed. Songbird probably wouldn't like this change of position once she woke.  
  
I should have moved her back to sitting up, or moved off the sofa so she could have it to herself, and instead taken up the armchair, but I felt compelled to stay. Maybe it was because I was afraid moving would most definitely wake her. So, after careful consideration and eventually managing to stop myself studying her sleeping face as I felt a flush on my cheeks from being so improper, I picked up my book once again, starting to read a little uneasily as Alex slept with her head on my knee.  
  
  
A few more chapters ahead in my book, Alex stirred. Turning onto her side and stretching out, her hand hit my chest. Her palm spread out, tapping around the leather chest plate of my tunic before her brow furrowed and her eyes opened to me. A moments silence, and she stared up at me in confusion. possibly trying to figure out why she was lying in my lap and recalling how she fell asleep on the sofa a little while before.  
  
The sound of her stomach rumbling broke the silence.  
  
"Perhaps we should have something for lunch." I proposed, marking the page in my book and putting it down.  
  
"Sorry. Did I sleep through and make you miss it?" She sat up, rubbing at her eyes again, wiping the makeup further.  
  
"There is no set time for meals on this planet, Songbird. There is always food on the table to eat regardless of the time of day or night."  
  
She looked at me and clicked her tongue. "A yes or no would have sufficed, you pedantic asshole."  
  
  
Nightfall came soon enough. And I had suggested on walking Songbird back to her room, the conversation on her sleeping habits still in the back of my mind. We came upon the door of her designated chamber and she opened the door.  
"Are you going to be alright?"  
  
"Nightmares don't usually strike me twice consecutively so we should be good." She stuck a thumb up.  
  
"That wasn't my question." I clasped my hands behind my back. She sighed, resting her head on the door before glancing up at me.  
  
"I'll be fine, Loki, you know me." A one-shoulder shrug. That wasn't very confident. I hummed softly, eyes drifting to the floor as I considered my next words.  
  
"You know that my chambers are just down the hall. Don't... don't be afraid of interrupting my sleep should you need me or my company." I looked back at her, softly, ignoring my own stammer and wishing she would too. Though I was aware she would more than likely tease me for it.  
  
"Thank you?" She asked more than said. I guessed I could understand the sudden offer of politeness. But no teasing to be seen. "I suppose that's the same for me. But I would like to stress that if you come here, even in cat form, I'd like you to wake me up first."  
  
"I will. If I require it." I nodded back softly. "Goodnight, Songbird."  
  
"Goodnight, Mischief." She closed the door with a small smile.  
  
My body relaxed as if it had been highly stung for the last hours, letting out a breath I was unaware I'd been holding.  
  
 _'You got everything you wanted. And now you do again, just on a different planet this time'._  Why did those words stick with me since yesterday? Because they weren't true. I didn't have everything I wanted. I couldn't have everything I wanted. Because I didn't know what I wanted. Or I didn't understand why I wanted what it was that I wanted.  
  
Or  _who_ I wanted.  
  
I walked away from her door towards my own chambers, the thoughts swirling around my head. I would think on them more tomorrow. Or perhaps I wouldn't. Maybe it would be best to ignore the growing feeling in my chest whenever I was around my Songbird.  _The_ Songbird.  
  
Not mine. And she never would be.


	43. Street-wise

Authors note: Shorter chapter because the next one is special  
  
 **The next morning - Day 6 on Sakaar**  
Waking up from a half-restful sleep, Alex dragged herself out of bed and into the shower, splashing her face with a cooler temperature than she would usually prefer. Regardless of Loki's offer, she didn't feel as though she needed to go and find him. It was one of the milder mornings.  
  
Dressing in her angled dress and making a note to ask Loki for that spell again, she tied up her shoes and headed out into the corridor in search of Loki and food... not necessarily in that order.  
  
"What _are_ you wearing?" The voice of the pink-skinned alien made Alex spin around, the female staring at her as if the mechanic had grown another head. Alex wouldn't put the possibility past herself considering everything she'd done and not quite understood on this planet.  
  
"What you told me to wear." Alex crossed her arms.  
  
Kell scoffed a little, looking her up and down. "That's so four days ago."  
  
"And as I said to the Grandmaster, I got this five- _what the-_ " Alex was dragged away by her wrist and quickly tugged into another room.  
  
She was honestly surprised after all the times it had happened, she didn't have a permanent bruise running around her wrist from people dragging her into things she didn't want to be dragged into.  
  
  
Ten minutes later, Alex turned herself as she looked in the mirror before her, face scrunching uncomfortably.  
  
"There. Much better. But still sticking with the same colour theme as before. Green and gold suits you well." Kell appraised, looking the mechanic up and down with a nod.  
  
"This shows so much more skin than the other one. The bodice is practically non-existent." Alex folded her arms over herself, then switched to pulling down the forest green skirt that grazed just below mid-thigh. The slits in either side weren't helpful in leaving much to the imagination. "Can I at least have something else with it? A jacket or something to cover up if it gets cold?" Something landed in her arms. Unfolding the thin material, Alex held it out to reveal a cape that wouldn't even wrap around her full form if she pulled it tight enough.  
  
"Great."  
  
  
Heading out into the grand hall, walking to the beat of the pulsing music, Alex spotted Loki standing with a drink by the regular arena window, looking down to watch the warm-up fights as crowds cheered and screamed. She wandered over to him and stood by his side, cloak swaying as she came to a stop, grabbing his attention enough to do a double take, and his eyes drift downwards along the curves of her body. Alex noticed, hands subtly tugging down her skirt.   
  
"Morning."  
  
Loki's eyes snapped back to hers. "Good morning, Songbird." He nodded, clearing his throat, gently. "You've changed your outfit."  
  
"Yeah. Not my idea. What's your opinion on it?" Alex did a little spin, cape swishing as she turned on the spot. "I think it shows too much skin. I keep pulling the cape over myself to hide." She wrapped the forest green material over the front of herself in indication, before deciding the backs of her thighs were too exposed and let it fall back into place. "Do you think I look good?" She shrugged in question.  
  
Loki ran his eyes down her form again, swallowing and trying not to choke on his own tongue. He was silent for long enough Alex felt her stomach tighten in anxiety. "You look ravishing." He finally managed to blurt out, yanking his head away from her with great effort and drinking a few gulps from his goblet.  
  
"'Ravishing'?" Alex raised an eyebrow, feeling her cheeks warm. "Well, I didn't expect that."  
  
"You think I'm unable to compliment someone?" Loki responded quickly.  
  
"No, no. I just didn't expect the word 'ravishing'." Alex rubbed the back of her neck, moving her hair out the way. The god nodded, swallowing, but not because he was drinking.  
  
  
After breakfast, Alex disappeared. Loki noticed almost instantly that she was not near him on the sofa. After a look around the library and private gardens, the raven-haired male finally found her out on a palace balcony, a few other guests there but not surrounding or talking to her, and she was leaning slightly over with her eyes on the streets below.  
  
Walking up gently behind her, he joined her at her side, and she smiled softly.  
  
"Hey." Her attention was soon back on the dirt streets of Sakaar, people walking and dancing and partying, nothing different than what was happening inside the palace, the only difference being the music playing.  
  
"What are you looking at?" Loki tried to follow her sightline, brow furrowing.  
  
"Just wondering what it's like outside this place." The mechanic admitted, fingers tapping against the balcony rail. "As much as I know this is a palace with all sorts of rooms, many of which I'd like to avoid and wish I could unsee, I think I'm going stir crazy." She ran her hands through her straightened hair. Loki hummed, eyes flicking down to the street before coming up with an idea.  
  
"Shall we take a walk?"  
  
  
Outside the palace was somewhere Loki had explored once, and silently vowed never to go again. He had gone out for ten minutes and returned covered in paint, kiss marks, and a banner appraising Sakaar's beloved champion. But, for his Songbird, he would brave it again to make her happy.  
  
Walking outside onto the pathway, Loki took her aside. "Remember, if you feel anxious or uneasy at any time, squeeze my wrist and I shall bring you somewhere quieter immediately. Do you understand?" He lifted his arm in indication. Alex hadn't expected him to take such precautions but could see from the masses of crowds passing why he thought it might be something that would set her off. She had barely considered that herself. So, she nodded respectfully. "Good. Let us walk."  
  
The streets were loud with Sakaarians and aliens alike. Cheering and partying like no tomorrow, banners and posters waving in the air, party coloured streamers falling and streaking across the sky. Alex thought it should be illegal to have that many colours in the same area. It felt like she was looking through one of those psychedelic prism toys she used to have as a kid that you would twist the end, then the beads would reflect differently through the mirrors at the end of the tube. It gave her a headache. And gave her the ache of being elbowed in the side when she was suddenly dragged into a crowd walking the opposite direction than Loki and herself, being caught between two people and winded by someone with a headdress covered face, so she couldn't even glare at the person properly and be guaranteed they were looking at her to receive it.  
  
Something grasped her hand, not her wrist for once, and pulled her out of the crowd to a highly concerned looking Loki, staring at her intently. The two stayed silent for a moment, Alex relaxing and trying to breathe in and ignore the pain in her ribs. And after getting her breath back, her eyes trailed down Loki's arms and came to a stop at where their hands were still linked together.   
  
A pause.  
  
"I should probably just hold onto you anyway." The mechanic said, looking back up at Loki. He seemed surprised, raising an eyebrow. "Is that okay?"  
  
"I think it is a safe option as it is easy to get lost among these crowds." He nodded, turning to walk forwards again, before a cloud of red dust passed the two of them, hitting both of them in the face. Loki spat the power from his mouth, clicking his fingers to remove it from his cheek before twisting to face his Songbird who was coughing as it got caught in her throat.  
  
"Songbird?" The power had struck her across the right side of the face, streaking abstractly over her gold and black makeup.  
  
"I'm fine." Alex coughed into her closed fist before taking a deep breath. "Just got flour-bombed or the equivalent of that here." Loki shook his head, reaching up to brush some of it away with his hand, thumb tingling as it brushed over her lower lip before he caught himself and clicked his fingers instead, cleaning her and fixing her makeup back to its original detailing. Alex chuckled softly at him, squeezing the hand she was holding, lightly. "Thank you." Loki hummed, leading her away and deciding that, yeah, they'd had just about enough social outside interaction for one day.  
  
"Red is not your colour, anyway." He muttered under his breath, dragging her along behind him as they turned onto a few quieter streets, away from anything else to possibly tear them apart again.  
  
Reaching a quieter street and slowing to a casual walking pace, the two walked together in quiet, exploring and investigating the little side streets of Sakaar, before reaching a section that represented something like the shopping markets back on Earth with food and random objects of junk to be sold as treasures. And after, somehow, hearing Alex's stomach rumbling, Loki led them to the food court to pick out something her Midgardian body would be able to stomach, still holding her hand as they waited in line.  
  
Her hand was warm in his palm, as usual. The texture of her hand wasn't soft as silk like her cheek had been, but rough and calloused from working in the lab. It gave her a sense of reality in his eyes. She wasn't the 'perfect' specimen like so many Midgardians craved. She wasn't as thin as a twig or flawlessly tanned, or without marks and flaws. He was aware of the scars on her wrists and body from lab accidents and doing what she loved, but she was not without her own beauty, and the rough and tough attitude she took towards things.   
  
Maybe one day he'd tell her that. Maybe.


	44. Chapter 44

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sorry

**Later that day...**  
Loki and Alex returned from their 'exciting' adventure outside, both mentally agreeing to never make that mistake again. The food Loki had picked out for Alex hadn't been all that bad if she was honest, but the purple colour had made her just a little bit curious about its origin. Not that she verbalised the question, because she knew someone around her would give her the answer.   
  
They hadn't stopped holding hands until they reached the sofa again, sitting down and realising they were sitting closer than normal. A quick glance down at their interlocked fingers, then back up at one another, the hold was quickly shaken off and the two of them shuffled away towards either end of the couch.  
  
It was later in the day when everything took a steep turn. Loki had been dragged away yet again by the Grandmaster to entertain a few newcomers, leaving Alex in the main hall along with a few other guests who were instantly enraptured by her stories of New York and ending up in situations she had no business being in.  
  
But when Loki came back, that's when things snapped into place. The god of mischief walked into the hall and looked over to the couch to see Alex sitting, legs folded under her as she talked to her group from the day before, specifically to Rowen who was sat particularly close, and Rowen lifted her hand to his lips, pressing a gentle kiss to her knuckles, then to the inside of her wrist.  
  
He snapped.  
  
"Excuse me, but I believe I need to borrow Songbird for the rest of the afternoon."  
  
"But we were just talking about-" Rowen was talking to thin air before he could finish, Loki whisking Alex away with a none-too-gentle grip, dragging the stumbling mechanic all the way to his own quarters, pressing the numbers into the keypad before bringing her inside and shutting the door.  
  
As he released her wrist, Alex rubbed the now numb skin to try and restart her blood flow from the sudden violent act. "What the hell was that about?" She demanded. The mask of cold almost-anger faded from Loki's face into his natural neutral one as he wandered further into his room.  
  
"What was what about?"  
  
"You dragged me out of nowhere, and into what I assume is your room, for no apparent reason." Alex crossed her arms at the God who had his back turned to her.  
  
"He was flirting with you."  
  
"Yeah, no shit Sherlock, you think I don't know that?" Alex raised an eyebrow. Loki looked over his shoulder with a furrowed brow. "Of course I know he was flirting with me. He's not exactly the most subtle being on this planet, but I've had other advances around here from worse." She unfolded her arms and wrung out her hands. "And anyway, I wouldn't ever go for someone like him." She shrugged in honesty. Loki turned himself round to him. "Why do you care if he's flirting with me, anyway?"  
  
"Why would you not follow his advances?" He pressed, suddenly very interested.  
  
"What do you care? Its next to none of your business." Alex shrugged. Then she paused, taking in the God for all he was at that moment. His body language was tense, strung taut like a cord. And his icy blue eyes were hard, his pupils wide. She huffed and crossed her arms. "Are you jealous, Loki?"  
  
"Don't be..." He started. But 'ridiculous' didn't come out of his mouth. Why wouldn't it? He was the God of Lies, lies should roll off his tongue just as naturally as breathing, shouldn't it? "Don't be..." 'Absurd'. Again, the word didn't come out of his mouth. Why couldn't he deny it? He'd never had this problem before with words and his silver tongue to appease someone.  
  
Alex rolled her eyes, looking off to the side. "Why would you be jealous, anyway?" She sucked her bottom lip in, volume dropping. "Who would be jealous because of me?" Her eyes fell to the fur carpet beneath her heels.  
  
"Don't speak about yourself in such terms, Songbird. Any man or woman alive would be an incompetent fool to doubt your worth." Loki snapped instantly. Alex's head shot up to look at him in quick confusion. Why was he suddenly so defensive? And about  _her_? Loki's eyes moved away from her own. "As I have, before. I am a fool when it comes to you." He muttered a lot less confidently towards the floor.  
  
Something twisted in Alex's gut. Something deep. So, she rolled with her gut, as it had never let her down before.  
  
"Do you... love me, Loki?"  
  
A pause.  
  
"Do you love  _me_ , Alex?" Loki didn't look at her when he asked, but only after the few seconds of silence to follow did those baby blues glance back to her.  
  
Alex chewed her lip. "That's a difficult question to answer." Loki looked away again, pacing slightly further into the room. "I know I feel something. But I've never really been in love before... or at least not like this, I suppose." She'd had a few romps in high school and college, but nothing quite like what she felt for him. This was so much different. "I'm sure you have. You're over a thousand years old. I'm sure you've had countless people fall for you, and you've had those you've loved."  
  
"It's true." Loki didn't bother to deny it. "I can surround myself with fawning admirers. I have always been able to persuade people to adore me, whether through magic or through my charms." He heard Alex scoff gently and mustered his courage to spin to face her. "But never before have I been able to persuade someone to love me." He admitted, almost pleadingly. Her arms were crossed, defensive as if she didn't believe him. "Not as a Prince of Asgard, not as Thor's weasley little brother, not as the would-be King. No. No one looked upon me with love." His palms joined together, playing with the fingers of his left hand as he fidgeted. "In time, I realised there would always be the lingering fear of never deserving love, because if I deserved it, why was I not experiencing it? Why was I a shadow for love to pass by? Even before I was discovered to be the monster parents would tell their children about at night." He swallowed, fighting back glassy eyes and forcing his voice to stay strong. "What do you see in me? Why do you have such faith after seeing what I can do? What destruction I can bring? What pain I can cause?" He tilted his head. "Why would you follow me when I've all but given up hope on myself? The monster."  
  
Alex sighed, taking a step closer. "You're not a monster, Loki. You never were and never will be."  
  
Loki scoffed, standing straight and hands falling to his sides. Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath, and Alex stood back to watch the tips of his fingers slowly twitch and his pale skin be taken over by a blue tint. Spreading from his fingertips up to his wrists and disappearing under his tunic to then appear again at the edge of his neck and swallow his pink skin upwards until it reached his hairline. Darker azure symbols raised on his skin and around his eyes, eyes that once they opened, sparked a sudden contrast with their burning crimson shade.  
  
Alex had never seen him in full form and swallowed as she blinked at the new change.  
  
"Look at me." The frost giant child demanded in a tone that matched his appearance, cold and icy. "You mean to tell me I am not a freak? That you would have me like this? With my illusions stripped away, when all my magic is gone, and the true beast underneath my skin facing you?" Step by careful step, the mechanic cautiously approached him, locking emerald green eyes with his ruby sclera. Hesitating only for a moment, she lifted a hand with gentle movements, slowly stretching out to reach for his frostbitten cheek. He flinched away. "Monster." He told, growling lightly.  
  
"You don't scare me, Mischief." She shook her head. He took in a soft breath, head tilting back to lock eyes again, and her peach fingertips grazed the line of his cut jaw. The two flinched, but Alex pushed on, sliding her fingers against and under his jaw until she was cupping his cheek and holding his face in her hand.  
  
Loki suddenly grabbed her wrist. "I could  _kill_ you if I wanted." He tightened his grasp in warning, but Alex kept herself relaxed.  
  
"So could anyone if they were dedicated enough." She replied calmly, "I could even kill you if I wanted." Was added with a shrug. "But not since the first day you kidnapped me has the thought even crossed my mind."  
  
"I'm sure it did at least once when you discovered my hiding for three years." His hold fell lax.  
  
"Well, maybe then it did." She chuckled, looking down and pulling her hand back to herself. "You've still yet to apologise for that, properly." She smiled a little at him.  
  
"You really mourned for me." The side of his jaw began to fade back to the porcelain colour it was originally, spreading over his face to return him to his humanised form.  
  
"You should know. You were there." She reminded him, tipping her head a little.  
  
The god sighed through his nose, eyes falling to the rug beneath them before he took one single step back. And then something Alex never thought she would ever see in her life happened.  
  
Loki bent his knees, and he kneeled.  
  
Alex blinked. "You're  _kneeling_? Shouldn't I be the one doing that?" She raised an eyebrow at the God of Mischief and Lies on his knees in front of her, completely of his own volition.  
  
"Considering this a one-time occurrence. I cannot force you to stay with me, but I can beg for your forgiveness, Songbird." He didn't drop his head, forcing his eyes to stay on hers, pleading with them, verbally and silently begging for her to forgive him. Alex closed her eyes, dragging in a long breath before letting it out again.  
  
"Loki, and as much as I can't believe the words are coming out of my mouth, I don't want you to kneel and beg for my forgiveness." She opened her eyes to him. His brows drew together. "I don't want you to feel like you need to beg me for anything." She reached out, tentatively, fingers brushing the leather shoulder of his tunic, before sliding underneath his chin and tapping. He pulled himself up to standing. "I don't 'crave subjugation' from anyone, especially not you. I'd be being an idiot to think I could control you in any way."  
  
"You'd be the first not to try. You're much too clever for that." He broke a smile.  
  
"Apparently not clever enough to understand my own feelings though. Or yours."  
  
"I am fascinated with you, Alex." Loki summarised. "You enraptured me with nothing but intellect and sarcastic wit. You made me feel things I was unaware I could still feel. A mortal? How could a mere mortal have such an effect on a higher being?"  
  
"Easy there, Loki. You were just getting back in my good books." Alex crossed her arms, but her tone was light and joking. Loki's grin only grew as he reached out his time, cupping her own cheek and tilting her head up the little bit of height difference he had on the girl.  
  
He sighed. "Why couldn't you have just been a good little mortal and behaved as I ordered?"  
  
"Because that's boring as fuck?" She shrugged. Loki laughed. A genuine laugh came from his mouth. Alex felt a swell of pride in her heart, and something a little more lustful grow in her gut. Her smile dropped as their eyes met, the god's eyes running over her face before falling to her lips for longer than a second. "Loki..." She took a tiny step forward, closing part of the small gap between them.  
  
"Do what you feel is right." He breathed softly, and Alex could feel his cool breath brush her face.  
  
Alex swallowed. The god leaned ever so slightly down so their lips barely brushed. But he left it to Alex to initiate or pull back.  
  
And Alex had never had very good impulse control.  
  
Pushing forward, their lips connected in a delicate flutter. The kiss was soft, timid almost, as the two tested the waters for the first time. And it didn't last as long as either of them would have liked, breaking apart just as easily as they had joined together with a faint breath.   
  
" _Songbird_ ," Loki whispered against her lips, and Alex's head moved to the side to look away, the reality of the situation hitting her in the face. "Please don't turn away from me." Loki cupped her cheek, voice desperate and his eyes becoming glassy. "You're one of the only beings that has ever looked at me with anything but hatred." He swallowed thickly, the sound stark and loud above their otherwise gentle breathing. "Please don't turn away from me. Not now. Not after your kiss." He shook his head, shifting in place as he begged.  
  
Alex huffed. "You did just fine without me for--"  
  
 _"I did not!"_  His raised voice made Alex flinch, but Loki grasped her upper arms to hold her close. "Do you know how often I have wished that you were beside me? How much I wanted to find you, see you, find out why I felt what I felt for you? Three years without you, knowing you would hate me if you ever saw my face again. After everything that I did to you." Alex could feel the tremor in his hands on her arms. He was trying so hard to keep himself together it physically hurt. "I so badly wanted to come and find you. I was ready to face your wrath and whatever else you would have thrown at me. I would have accepted it all just to see you again."  
  
"Then why didn't you?"  
  
"I was afraid." Loki inclined his head, ashamed of his words. "I have never had someone to call my own that would call me theirs, too." His hands trembled on her arms. "I was scared of losing you. Even though I did not have you, then." Glassy eyes met his Songbirds. Alex couldn't help it. Her own eyes spilt over, but she wasn't sniffing and sobbing. Her stress just overflowed, the same as her eyes. Loki removed one hand from her arm, thumb stroked her dampening cheek. "Please. Please don't cry, my Songbird."  
  
She laughed wetly. "Shut up and kiss me again you romantic-ass piece of shit." The girl commanded.  
  
Loki let out a broken yet relieved breath, pulling her closer and connecting their lips in a deep kiss.


	45. Vacation

If someone had asked Alexandra Jessica Callaway-Stark back when she was twenty  _'where do you think you'll be in five years?'_ , falling in love with a Norse god who kidnapped and forced her to build a doomsday device for her own planet for three weeks when they first met wouldn't be the first thing that would spring to mind. But, since when had her life ever worked out as she planned?  
  
If someone asked Loki Odinson back when he was about to reign down an attack on the Earth  _'where do you think you'll be in five human years?'_ , falling in love with a human girl who was a sarcastic little shit who had done nothing but sass, tease, and generally try her best to understand him since they first met wouldn't be the first thing that would spring to mind. But since when had anything from the day Thor was banished ever worked out as he had planned? Three years pretending to be Odin didn't count.  
  
Both never saw the other coming, but neither one of them would take back the day they met for any world offered. Not even one like Sakaar.  
  
Speaking of was just as alive as ever, and almost felt as if it subconsciously knew of their breakthrough and the people of the planet of lost and found were celebrating even harder. Not that Loki and Alex stuck around to enjoy it, instead after sharing their kisses and first cautious touches, they headed to the one place where awkward silence wouldn't feel awkward anymore.  
  
The library was cool and calm. Loki sat with as much grace as would be expected of an upstanding royal, while Alex was sprawled across the same sofa with as much grace as a seal, her head resting in his lap, holding her book up over her face and definitely not having dropped it two times previous to now. And the second time definitely wasn't due to Loki's hand suddenly appearing and delicately petting her hair. Alex didn't think he knew he was doing it, either that or he was trying his best not to look like he was making an effort to show some form of affection, regardless of the fact that less than two hours before he was on his knees asking for forgiveness.  
  
Alex smirked in remembrance. She got the God of Mischief and Lies to kneel. She'd never knelt for him, and if she recalled she'd only ever been asked once to do so, which was in Germany with a crowd of terrified people. And the mechanic had squatted instead.  
  
The giggle she let out at the thought pulled Loki's attention from his book.  
"Something amusing, Songbird?"  
  
"Nothing." She lied. Probably a bad idea to the God of Lies but, whatever, she was making out with him less than two hours ago. Caution wasn't exactly her first instinct for choosing her words now. "Just something in the book," She added as her eyes caught his sceptical eyebrow raise.  
  
"Care to share?" Loki lowered his own book to rest on his free leg, thumb holding the pages apart gently.  
  
"Uh... there's a male and a female character, and the male has constantly asked the female to do something specific, and each time she's not done it, but later on the male character ends up doing the same thing he asked her to do instead for  _her_ ," Alex explained with a tone she could have slapped herself for with how suspicious it sounded.  
  
Loki smirked, raising an eyebrow. "And what are the names of these characters?" The undertone in his own voice was too smug for its own good. Alex bit her lip.  
  
"Tom and Amy." Alex blurted the first names she could think of. The would-be King hummed a long note, before raising his book back up to read.  
  
"Tom and Amy," Loki echoed with a short nod, going back to his paragraph to read. "Interesting names." He added softly, hand returning to its petting motion through the mechanic's hair. Alex nodded, relaxing and lifting her own book back above her face to try and find where she had left off when her mind began to wander. "Although you should realise by this time that lying to me is almost an equivalent of playing mind games with me. And as you are no doubt aware, my strength does not lie in physical power, so much as mental." His classic smile reappeared on his face as Alex tensed slightly in his lap. The god chuckled. "I'm glad you found my kneeling to you so amusing, Songbird." Blue eyes fell down to green.  
  
Alex mentally cursed and lowered her book to rest on her chest. "It just seems funny to me that you are constantly telling people to kneel, and the one time you demanded it of me, I didn't so much kneel as I did crouch just to spite you."  
  
"I will never ask you to kneel for me again, Songbird," Loki stated matter-of-factly. Callaway raised an eyebrow in confusion. "I would rather you stood tall by my side than knelt low at my feet. Like the warrior you are."  
  
"Warrior, huh? That's a new one."  
  
"I've seen you fight. You would stand up to match many of the female warriors I have seen on Asgard. If I didn't know where you came from and watched you demonstrate your skills, I would've thought you were a Valkyrie." His smile made her smile in return. "Although your technique could do with a bit of cleaning up." Aaaaand compliment ruined.  
  
"Well, I don't really take much more than defence classes since I'm not actually an Avenger or anything. But dad demands I learn how to fight and defend myself." Alex shrugged before freezing and her palm hit her forehead. "Oh, fuck."  
  
"What?" Loki looked down in concern.  
  
"My dad's gonna kill me when he finds out about..." Alex gestured between the two of them, not quite sure what to call the two yet.  
  
"Your father is not here." He raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Thanks for reminding me. But I feel that somehow next time he calls or I call him he's going to know. Cause he basically, like all other parents, have this fucking sonar thing to know when their kid has done something significant. Whether that be a good thing or a bad thing." Alex rubbed her face, sighing into her hands with a long breath out.  
  
"Would you class this as a good thing?" Loki's small, questioning voice caused her to peek through her fingers at his unsure expression. She pulled her hands away.  
  
"Of course I would. How can you ask that?" She furrowed her brow, then tried recalling what he had said about past love attempts. "Loki, you've admitted it now. Hell, you knelt for me. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon." She smiled happily, and his lips twitched softly. "Figuratively and literally." Her warm chuckle caused his smile to come crawling back onto his lips. Alex sighed again. "Ugh, you're lucky dad's not here. He'd strangle you."  
  
"Could he even reach my neck, though?" The god raised an eyebrow.  
  
Alex snorted a laugh before swatting him. "Loki!" She fell back against the sofa, giggling as he chuckled gently, marking the page in his book.  
  
"Even if he could I would put doubt into his fighting experience. As I do yours." He put his book down, taking note of the mechanic's little glare up at him for his statement. "I would be inclined to show you a few techniques if you wanted?" He asked softly, tilting his head slightly in the way when he was using his Silver Tongue. But Alex was aware of that now.  
  
"You offering to teach me, Mischief?"  
  
"Just a few things to help better defend yourself. You often leave yourself open to attack." The god analysed quickly.  
  
"To be fair, the last time you saw me was in New York. I've moved on since then." Alex shrugged in his lap.  
  
Loki couldn't help but smirk at her confident tone. "I'll be the judge of that, Songbird."   
  
  
As it turns out, Alex  _had_ moved on from their fight in the Tower. Almost enough to knock the smug asshole on his butt a few times, though ultimately ended up on her own those times instead. Still, Loki was impressed, and Alex felt warm when he told her as such.  
  
The gladiators and fighters sharing the room around them watched their fight, distractedly. It seemed they both had a few admirers. And some had even started to place bets. But those quickly found their currency twisted into slithering creatures to which they yelled and dropped the matter while running to the nearest bathroom. Alex only rolled her eyes with a small smile. 'Possessive' was a new name she could add to her nickname list, it seemed.  
  
  
Returning to the hall to share lunch and return to the sofas to watch the warm-up fights in the arena, Alex and Loki shared goblets without much talk between them, both still slightly unsure how else to continue after this morning's events. Not that they would have to figure it out because, before long, they heard their names called in a very familiar voice.  
  
"Loki!? Alexandra!" Looking away from the arena and across the hall, they spotted the Thunder God trapped in a chair with an obedience disk in his neck and the Grandmaster looming over, squinting at them. "Over here!" Thor continued to stage whisper at them as the Grandmaster moved to change the music. Loki blanched. Alex blinked. But both stood and wandered over to the brother who had been mostly forgotten by now. "You're alive?" He asked as they were in range.  
  
"Yes, of course, we're alive." Alex raised an eyebrow.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Loki asked, not seeming too concerned or surprised.  
  
"What do you mean, what am I doing? I'm stuck in this stupid chair. Where's your chair?"  
  
 "I didn't get a chair."   
  
"Get me out of this one." Thor wriggled in the hold the chair had on him. It was ironic that the thunder god could be so easily defeated by metal and electricity.  
  
"I can't. We've made friends with this man. He's called the Grandmaster. I've gained his favour." Loki tried to explain quickly.  
  
"The Bi-Frost brought us out here weeks ago." The mechanic added.  
  
"Weeks ago? I just got here."  
  
"What are you whispering about?" The Grandmaster performed his sudden appearing trick. The trio jumped, slightly startled. "Yeah. Time works real different around these parts. On any other world, I'd be like, millions of years old. But here on Sakaar..." The Grandmaster took a pause, and then his eyes drifted to the mischievous God. An uncomfortable silence followed as Alex looked between them for not the first time with suspicion since arriving here. "In any case, you know this... You call yourself Lord of Thunder?"   
  
"God of Thunder. Tell him." Thor grinned and nodded.  
  
"I've never met this man in my life." Loki shrugged.  
  
"He's my brother."   
  
"Adopted," Loki responded.  
  
"Is he any kind of a fighter?" The Grandmaster asked with the beginnings of a grin. Loki shrugged and Alex held two fingers a small distance apart.   
  
"You take this thing out of my neck and I'll show you myself."  Thor tried again to wrestle himself out of his seat.   
  
"Now listen to that. He's threatening me," The grandmaster straightened his collar, "Hey, Sparkles, here's the deal. If you wanna get back to Ass-place, Assberg--"  
   
" _Asgard_."   
  
The age-old god smirked. "Any contender who defeats my champion, their freedom they shall win."   
  
"Fine. Then point me in the direction of whoever's ass I have to kick!"  
  
"That's what I call, contender! Direction would be this way, Lord." The Grandmaster guided the chair to move away as guards began to arrive. They hauled Thor up and escorted him out without much fighting.  
  
The two remaining looked to each other with a sigh.  
  
Alex clicked her tongue. "Looks like vacation is over."


	46. Friend from work

**Later that day...**  
The Thunder God's knees were sore against the cold floor of the freaky circle dungeon, facing the wall and quietly praying with closed eyes, Korg having disappeared around the corner to give him some privacy.   
  
"Odin, I bid you take your place in the halls of Valhalla. Where the brave shall live forever. Nor shall we mourn but rejoice-"  
  
"-for those that have died the glorious death." The second voice joined in. Thor opened his eyes, a scowl tugging at his lips as he turned to sit down, facing his brother across the cell with a hard look. "It hurts, doesn't it? Being lied to. Being told you're one thing and then learning it's all a fiction." Loki shrugged softly. Thor glanced around, picking up a small stone that had fallen from Korg's leg and casually tossed it at his brother, the rock phasing right through Loki's illusion to hit the wall behind. "You didn't think I'd really come and see you, did you? This place is disgusting." He made a face. Thor threw another stone through Loki and his brother sighed. "Does this mean you don't want my help?" Thor tossed another rock. Loki resisted rolling his eyes. "Look, I couldn't jeopardize my position with Grandmaster, it took me time to win his trust. He's a lunatic, but he can be amenable." Another stone. Another sigh. "What I'm telling you is, you could join me and Songbird at the Grandmaster's side--"  
  
"Songbird?" Thor raised an eyebrow. Loki had forgotten his brother's ignorance towards Alexandra, momentarily.  
  
"Miss Stark." He corrected.  
  
"Callaway. She doesn't enjoy being called Miss Stark." Thor gave a disinterested look, leaning back, arms folding in his lap. "You two seem awfully close now. What spell have you cast on her this time?"  
  
"Do you truly think so little of me, Thor?" Loki raised an eyebrow. The Thunder God's expression didn't change. "I have cast no spells or hexes. I never have, to address your insinuation. Miss Callaway stands beside me of her own choice." The trickster crossed his arms. "We both arrived over a week ago. We managed to gain the Grandmaster's favour."  
  
"'We', is it?"  
  
Loki ignored the jab. "Join us at the Grandmaster's side. Perhaps, in time, an accident befalls the Grandmaster, and then..." The brother gestured between them both, following with a thumbs up. Thor threw another stone through Loki, bored. "You're not seriously thinking of going back, are you? Our sister destroyed your hammer like a piece of glass. She's stronger than the three of us. She's stronger than you. You don't stand a chance. Do you understand what I'm saying to you?" Thor scowled. Loki let out a breath. "Fine. I guess I'll just have to go it alone. Like I've always done."  
  
"Or with your Songbird, apparently." Thor a little less than sneered. "I thought attachment was meaningless to you, Loki. Nothing. A heartbeat."  
  
"Would you say something about our current problem?" Loki grumbled back. Now out of stones, Thor looked around the floor for more. "Say something!" Demanded the would-be King.  
  
"What would you like me to say? You faked your own death, you stole the throne, stripped Odin of his power, stranded him on Earth - to die, releasing the Goddess of Death. Have I said enough, or do you do you want me to go further back than the past two days?" Loki's eyes burned. Thor stared coldly at him as his brother worked to compose himself.  
  
"You know, I haven't seen this Beloved Champion he talks of, but I've heard he's astonishingly savage. I've placed a large wager against you tomorrow. Don't let me down." Loki's illusion shimmered as his form disappeared, just as pounding footsteps approached and kicked the wall where he once stood.   
  
"Piss off, ghost!" Korg was left looking at an empty space before turning to Thor. "He's freaking gone."  
  
  
"How did it go?" Alex asked as Loki returned to consciousness in his room, standing in the centre of the carpet as he had been stock still and silent for minutes.  
  
"He's going to fight. Always was a stubborn oaf." He huffed at his Songbird, sat at the edge of the bed in her skirt, top, and cloak.  
  
"What did you say to him?"  
  
"Nothing of interest for you, Songbird." Loki shook his head before his eyes honed in on the ball of fabric in her lap. "What's that?"  
  
Alex grinned happily, standing and unfolding the material to full length. "I got bored and snooped around. I think you'd look nice with the cape. We could be twins."  
  
"Highly doubtful we could be related."  
  
"Figure of speech, Mischief." She tutted and rolled her eyes before holding it out towards him. "Put it on." She told him. Loki raised a calm eyebrow. "Pleeeaaase?" She bounced a little on her feet, trying to use her best puppy eyes on him.  
  
The mischevious god sighed and took it from her grasp. "If it will please you."  
  
"It will."  
  
"Don't think you will get everything to request only because of your current begging expression." He swung the cape around to his back, attaching it to buckles on his tunic.  
  
"Yeah, yeah. Put it on. Put it oooon." She grinned and watched as he fully attached it with a look of impatience to his love before standing straight and proud for her to view. "You look cute."  
  
"Cute?"  
  
"Yeah. Cute. In an  _'I could steal your heart and your wallet simultaneously'_  way." Alex shrugged before glancing at the room doors. "Shall we go watch Thor get his ass handed to him then?"  
  
"A pleasure it would be to accompany you for such a thing." Loki held out his arm for her to take. She slipped her hand into his cooler palm instead, and Loki shrugged it off, the both of them walking out of his chambers. "You're not that fond of Thor, then?"  
  
"What gives you that idea?"  
  
"You're excited to see him be beaten." Loki put it eloquently.  
  
"I just have a history of Thor dragging me into situations where I nearly die. It would be fun for just the slightest payback on that."  
  
 

 _"Wow! Look at all of you. What a show! What a night! Who's having fun?"_ The large projection of the Grandmaster addressed his screaming audience of the arena. _"Please, I'm your host. A b_ _ig_ _round of applause for all of our undercard competitors, who today died so gruesomely. Good sports. What a show! What a night! This is what you've come for, and so have I."_ Raucous applause cheered out at his words before he made a shushing motion with an excited grin. _"And now, without further ado, it's main event time. Making his first appearance, though he looks quite promising, got a couple of tricks up his sleeve. I'll say no more, see what you think. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you... Lord of Thundeeeer!"_  
  
The doors at one side of the arena opened, and the Thunder God strolled out. Shaved head, trimmed beard, minimalist armour, and covered in weapons with two swords on his back, a giant mace in one hand and spiked shield in the other.  
  
 _"Watch out for his fingers. They make sparks."_  
  
Thor looked around at the masses of screaming Sakaarian fans before putting on his helmet, a gladiator style replicating his own old helmet with the winged helm.   
  
 _"Okay, this is it. Let's get ready to welcome this guy."_ The Grandmaster seemed all too happy to be talking.  _"Here he comes. He is a creature. What can we say about him? Well, he's unique. There's none like him. I feel a special connection with him. He's undefeated. He's the reigning. He's the defending. Ladies and gentlemen... I give you... Your Incredible..."_  The Champion exploded through the opposite door of the arena, a giant mass of green bursting into the stadium with a roar.   
  
"Huuuuulk!"  
  
The Hulk. The fucking Incredible Hulk. Alex nearly smacked herself just to check she was staring at the alter ego of Dr Banner. An armoured Hulk in a shoulder guard and a Spartan helmet, carrying a Warhammer in one hand and a battleaxe in the other. The Hulk pounded his chest and roared, further energizing an already frenzied crowd.  
  
Thor's arms drop to his sides, defence dropping with a grin as he cheered out at the sight of his friend. "Yes!"  
  
The crowd hushed a little in confusion of his outburst.  
  
Alex blinked at the sight of the Hulk on a foreign planet.  
  
Loki went ghost white, traumatic memories of being Hulk-smashed flooding his brain.   
  
The Grandmaster's projection disappeared.  
  
"Hey, Loki. You okay?" Alex looked at the god, concerned about the look he was giving Banner. After all, she had had no idea about what happened between the two, not having been present for the Hulk-smashing incident. Loki's eyes fell on her, and he was suddenly thankful for that mercy of her ignorance.  
  
"I have to get off this planet." He blurted before scrambling off the sofa and heading for the door.  
  
"Hey, hey, hey, hey. Where you going?" Grandmaster appeared in front of him suddenly, guiding him back to the sofa of the VIP box and dropping Loki down in the front row, right in front of the glass beside Alex once again, who was still confused about the situation. Loki sat on his side of the sofa, casually trying to hide his face in his hand.  
  
  
"Hey! Hey!" Thor waved his arms. "We know each other. He's a friend from work!" Thor called out to the Grandmaster, who sent a suspicious glance to Loki. The lanky god cleared his throat, avoiding eye contact. "Where have you been? Everybody thought you were dead. But so much has happened since I last saw you. I lost my hammer. Like, yesterday, so that's still pretty fresh. Loki. Loki's alive. Can you believe it? He's up there. Loki! Look who it is!"  The Hulk growled, looking up at the window. Loki looked petrified. "Oh, Banner, I never thought I would say this, but I... I'm happy to see you."  
  
Hulk's face grimaced "No Banner! Only Hulk!" The mass suddenly charged towards Thor, quickly.   
  
 **"** What are you doing? It's me." Thor dodged the first few attacks before Hulk managed to send him flying across the arena. Drawing his sword, he stabbed it into the ground to slow his momentum, drawing the other and standing up. "Banner, we're friends. This is crazy. I don't want to hurt you!"   
  
Hulk sent Thor slamming into the wall.  
  
"Here we go." The Grandmaster chuckled gently. Alex winced, not really enjoying this as much as she thought she might.  
  
Thor jumped out of the way of Hulk's Warhammer, hitting so hard it stayed lodged in the wall. Distracted, Thor drew his own and stuck Hulk with it, causing him to crash on the opposite side of the arena, sprawled out in a pile of rubble, slightly dazed.  
  
Thor walked over with the confidence the fight was won. Removing his helmet, he called out. "Hey, big guy. The sun's getting real low." Banner removed his helmet, teeth gritting as he glared at Thor. The Thunder God stopped in front of him, gently reaching out a hand in a way that would mirror Black Widow, picking up the trick he learned from the Ultron incident. "That's it. The sun's going down. I won't hurt you anymore. No one will." He smiled calmly and gently.  
  
The god was suddenly dragged by his ankle, the Hulk whipping him multiple times against the arena floor, cutting up Thor's exposed skin and bruising his face over and over again.   
  
Loki shot up from the sofa. "Yes! That's how it feels!" He practically screamed at the window, laughing before turning to see both Grandmaster and Alex were giving him equally bewildered looks. "I'm just a huge fan of the sport." The god chuckled and sat back down, looking proud of himself.  
  
Thor jumped up from the final smash into the floor, gripping his axe tightly. "All right. Screw it." The two charged at each other.   
  
"I'm not enjoying this as much as I thought," Alex mumbled out, hands half covering her eyes in an attempt to try and shield herself from some of the damage.  
  
"Would you like to leave?" Loki asked her softly, coming down from his happy high. Thor and Hulk were fighting Warhammer versus battleaxe... and Thor was somehow winning. He began using Hulk's aggression against him, continually knocking or tripping Hulk off his feet while evading all of his best attacks.  
  
"I'll give it a few more minutes." Alex decided, leaning her elbows on her knees to watch.  
  
"I know you're in there, Banner. I'll get you out!" One particularly cruel blow disarmed Hulk, Thor breaking Hulk's axe with the Warhammer as he fell to the ground. But he just tackled the god to the ground, beginning to pummel him with punches, snapping his head to face left and right.  
  
The three in the VIP box watched with fascination as Thor's eyes began to glow white, and suddenly a crack of thunder knocked the raging beast off the god with a burst of lightning.   
  
Seething with electricity, Thor springs to his feet and then punched the monster with another spark of lightning, launching him backwards.  
  
The crowd quickly changed their tune.  _"Thun-der! Thun-der! Thun-der!"_  
  
Thor looked down at his forearms sparking with small charges of electricity running through his veins. Thor advanced on Hulk, before a sudden zap in his neck as the Obedience Disk fired up sent him tumbling to the arena floor in a squirm. Seizing the opportunity, Banner launched up into the air, at the height of his jump twisting around and descending fast towards the Thunder God lying flat on the arena floor.  
  
Thor groggily turned over just in time to see Hulk coming at him. Right before impact, Thor's eyes turned lightning white before he was crushed into the floor by the beast, the cheering crowd returning to their previous favourite as the fight was declared over, and Thor was taken out by a gurney.  
  
"Is it okay to look now?" Loki turned, confused, to a wincing Alex who was hiding her face behind her hands, not having looked since Hulk first jumped into the air. He rolled his eyes, gently peeling her fingers away from her face and settling them in her lap. She took in the view of Thor being carted out, nodded at the fight over. "What were you yelling about earlier?" She raised an eyebrow at the trickster.  
  
"I have experienced that particular move before from your friend." He answered tone clipped ever so slightly.  
  
"What? He flung you around like a bag of angsty Norse potatoes?" Alex snorted a laugh. "Damn, I wish I could have seen that."  
  
"Songbiiiiird..."


	47. Explain later

**Later that day...**  
Following the Thunder God and the Monster's fight in the arena, Alex had suggested they check up on Thor since he had been basically smashed into the arena ground so hard it had left a god'shaped imprint in the dirt. Loki had yet to look at her so judgmentally before that moment. So, she went on her own, getting directions from palace guards to where the Champion's chambers were, running through the invisible barrier just in time to see the god ump through the window with a shatter of glass, leaving herself, Valkyrie, and the Hulk standing there.  
  
"Friend stay!" Hulk growled, approaching the window.  
  
"Where'd he go?" Alex turned to Valkyrie.  
  
"Apparently to do what heroes do." She shrugged, walking off with a bottle of booze in hand.  
  
"I need to follow him." Alex jogged over to the window but didn't dare jump after him. She wasn't that stupid.  
  
Stomping footsteps advanced on her side. "Hulk carry you." The big guy was apparently in a giving mood.  
  
"You sure you won't drop me, big guy?" She chuckled jokingly but half serious. Banner, she had had experience with. Hulk? Not so much.  
  
"Hulk no drop friend. Hulk like Little Stark." The beast growled out with a... Alex supposed she could class that as a grin.  
  
"Aw. Thank you. I like you too." Or she thought so until she was hoisted into his arms quicker than a blink. That much muscle was not comfortable at all. "Easy. I get airsick quickly."  
  
"Little Stark no worry."  
  
"Sure, dude- aaaaaahhhh!" The two were quickly out of the window following Thor, and Alex screamed as she felt she was in freefall, regardless of Hulk's tight grip on her puny body compared.  
  
Hulk hit the ground with a thump, jolting Callaway in his arms before looking and spotting the quinjet.  
"Friend stay!" He called out, a little less than dropping Alex on her ass before running in the direction of the jet.  
  
Alex huffed, standing up on wobbly legs and heels, brushing herself off and looking around the scrapyard that was basically the Grandmaster's backyard. Stumbling her way through the metal and rubble, spotting some things she recognised and other things she wouldn't be able to tell apart from apple sauce, she finally managed to manoeuvre -and consistently fall- her way over to the jet where the Hulk was no longer the Hulk, but instead a very naked Banner and worried Thor throwing him a pile of clothes.  
  
"Don't freak out. You're okay. Put these on." Dr Banner looked at the clothes, confused.  
  
"Hey, Doctor Banner." Alex tried not to look at him as she walked into the destroyed back end of the jet and Thor glanced up.  
  
Bruce furrowed his brow and covered himself quickly. "Alexandra? Is Tony here too?"   
  
"No, he's not here. But listen. Just stay calm, okay? Sun's going down." Thor knelt beside the doctor, trying to keep him calm and from turning into the Hulk again. Bruce excused himself to a different part of the ship to get changed into Tony's spare clothes before Thor led him off the ship with Alex following, to get some fresh air and hopefully help.  
  
 "The sun's going down. It's getting really low. The sun's going down. It's getting real low." Thor continued to mutter, rubbing Bruce's shoulders as the three sat on the side street.  
  
"Would you stop saying that!? I'm on an alien planet!" Bruce knocked his hands away.  
  
"It's just a planet. You've been on a planet before."   
  
"Yeah! One!"   
  
"Now you've been on two." Thor chuckled.  
  
"I've been on four." Alex raised her hand helpfully.  
  
Bruce's eyes bulged before he dropped his head in his hands. "My neurons, they're firing faster than my brain can handle the information. In the past, I always felt like Hulk and I each had a hand on the wheel, but this time it's like he had the keys and I was locked in the trunk."   
  
"Alright, well, you're back now, that's all that matters."    
  
"No, it's not what matters. What I'm trying to tell you, is that if I turn into the Hulk again, Banner may never come back. And we're stranded on a planet that is designed to stress me out." Banner wrung his hands, jittery and struggling to contain his impulses to just run.  
  
Thor clapped a hand on his shoulder. "We're not stranded, I'm gonna figure out a way to get us home. Not your home, though. Asgard. My people are in great danger from this really powerful being who also happens to be my sister."   
  
"Okay, that is so wrong on so many- I don't wanna fight your sister. That's a family issue." Bruce shook his head.  
  
"No, she's an evil being." Thor pleaded.  
  
"I don't care what she is. I'm not fighting any more beings. I'm sick of it." The doctor crossed his arms in refusal. "If I turn into the Hulk, I am never gonna come back again. And you don't care. You don't care about me. You're not my friend." He turned away.  
  
"No! I don't even like the Hulk. He's all like... "smash, smash, smash." I prefer you." Thor smiled, and Bruce seemed to believe him for a moment. "But if I'm being honest, he is very powerful and useful."   
  
"Yeah, Banner's powerful and useful, too." He argued back.  
  
Thor hummed a long note. "Is he though?"   
  
"How many PhDs does Hulk have? Zero. How many PhDs does Banner have? Seven."  
  
"I have two now." Alex supplied again.  
  
"Oh, really?" Bruce moved to look past Thor to Alex, thankful for the one person in the situation who seemed to be the littlest bit sane.  
  
Alex nodded, proudly. "Yeah. Mechanics and mathematics. Look, you don't have to fight anyone. But we're in danger here, so we have to move." Callaway stood, brushing her cape off and holding out a hand for Bruce to take. He considered it but shook his head and stood up himself. Thor grabbed a towel from the ground next to him, putting it over his head. "What are you doing?" The mechanic questioned.  
  
"I need a disguise. I'm a fugitive."  
  
"I need a disguise," Bruce announced, looking around to see if he could spot a similar towel.  
  
"You are the disguise." Thor furrowed his brow as Banner found a pair of Tony's sunglasses in his jacket, sliding them on.  
  
"I'll be Tony Stark. Yeah. Tony, Alex, and the gypsy." He gestured to the three.  
  
"No, no you're not Tony. You're Bruce Banner."  
  
"Then why did you dress me up like Tony?"   
  
"Because you were naked." Alex deadpanned behind him.  
  
"Okay, I'll give you that." Bruce considered, tugging and pulling at the clothes as they started walking.   
  
"Why are you being so weird?" The god noticed it too.  
  
"I don't know. Maybe the fact that I was trapped for two years inside of a monster made me a little weird." Banner's skin and eyes flashed green. Thor instantly changed his tune to try and calm him down.  
  
"Hey. It's okay. You're good. Listen, we're gonna go to Asgard and you're not gonna have to think about the Hulk ever again. All right?" Thor rubbed his shoulders before starting to lead them into the crowds.  
  
"All right." Bruce breathed out a long, calming breath, following his lead with Alex walking behind him, just imagining the peace and quiet of his lab back home and seeing his friends again under better circumstances. And this kept him happy until he was nailed in the face with dry green paint, pilling off the sunglasses and looking up, losing sight of both the god and his best friend's daughter. "Thor! Alex!"  
  
Alex turned around at the call of her name, realising Banner had disappeared from sight through the party colours of the Sakaarians parading around the city, and when she turned to Thor to tell him, he was gone too.  
  
Well, shit.   
  
And as the spaces between the Sakaarian people and her got smaller, she started feeling more and more like she was -yet again- about to fall into an anxiety attack. She really wished that wasn't something she had inherited from her father. But last time she'd had Loki to pull her out of the crowd.  
  
Oh, Loki. She'd left him back in the palace. What was he doing now? Probably just watching the next match in the arena or telling his Rainbow Bridge story to another group of partiers.  
  
Alex felt herself calming down. Her heartbeat slowed as she recalled when she had come out here with Loki as if just the memory of him calmed her heart. And she picked herself up, weaving her way through the crowds to stumble into the back of a gypsy. Oh wait, nevermind, that was Thor. Wow, that disguise was actually pretty good from behind.  
  
"Alex?" Someone was waving their hand in front of her. She blinked, following the arm up to Banner's green stained face before spotting Valkyrie standing between them, and beckoning the three through the streets towards a Sakaarian apartment building.  
  
Once out of the crowds and standing together as four, Val turned to Thor.  
"So I'm saying that I wanna be on the team. Has it got a name?" Her hands were on her waist, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Yeah, it's called the... Revengers. Because I'm getting revenge. You're getting revenge. Do you want revenge?" Thor asked to Bruce.  
  
"I-I'm undecided." He stammered. The Thunder God turned to Callaway.  
  
Alex shrugged. "I just wanna go home. This place is basically one of my dad's parties dialled to eleven... and never-ending."   
  
"Also, I've got a peace offering." Valkyrie opened the front door, revealing a living area and sat in the corner, as restrained as anyone could be with a dozen chains around him, was the trickster god himself.  
  
"Surprise." Loki sang out at them. Thor picked up an empty bottle off a cabinet, tossing it at his head, seeing it bounce off and clatter on the floor. "Ow." Loki rolled his eyes at his brother's antics at expecting him to be an illusion. Though the natural smirk soon returned to his face, "Hello, Bruce."   
  
"So, last time I saw you, you were trying to kill everybody. Where are you at these days?" Bruce approached him warily, hands fidgeting.  
  
"It varies from moment to moment," Loki replied calmly. Bruce backed off a few paces to walk over to Val and Thor standing by the kitchen area. The entire apartment was a mess, bottles everywhere, blood-spattered clothes in the corner, a knife in the wall. Banner gave Thor a look of mild fear, to which Thor responded with a 'trust me' gesture.  
  
Val laid something on the bed, the blonde god picking it up and unwrapping it to reveal an old Asgardian sword in his hands, and was instantly entranced as he recognised the weapon.  
"Is that... a Dragonfang? This is the famed sword of the Valkyrie." He examined it closely with child-like curiosity. Valkyrie smiled proudly, nodded in confirmation.  
  
Alex stood by the open door of the apartment, looking at Loki, who soon peeled his eyes off his brother and the others to meet her own.  
"I leave you alone for five minutes..." Alex shook her head and didn't miss the small, genuine smile that curled Loki's lips up at the side. She approached him, slightly dirtied cape billowing behind her before she carefully sat herself down on his lap.  
  
The god froze, staring at her incredulously. "What are you doing?" His eyes flicked between her and his brother, who just turned around that moment to catch sight of the two together.  
  
"Sitting down. What are you doing?" She shrugged, smirking lightly and crossing her arms.  
  
"Why is she sat in his lap?" Bruce asked the elder brother, looking slightly concerned.  
  
"I'm... unsure." Thor furrowed his brow at his brother who ripped his eyes away from Thor's to look back at Alex and quietly mutter something under his breath. "I believe my brother may have cast some sort of lust spell on Miss Callaway." He told the doctor, passing the Dragonfang back to Val.  
  
Banner raised an eyebrow, almost curious. "He can do that?"  
  
"Apparently."  
  
"Tony would kill him if he ever saw them like that," Bruce mumbled before thinking. "If he ever gets the chance to see them like that, period."  
  
"I wouldn't worry. Because we are going through that." Thor gestured to the large floor to ceiling window behind them, gesturing to the largest gateway in the sky, firey red and yellow.  
  
"The Devil's Anus?" Valkyrie questioned.  
  
"That looks like a collapsing neutron star inside of an Einstein-Rosen Bridge." Bruce walked towards the window, fascinated.  
  
"We need another ship. That would tear mine to pieces."   
  
"She's right. We need one that can withstand the geodetic strain from the singularity and has an offline power steering system that could also function without the onboard computer." Thor joined Bruce at his side, the doctor giving an almost impressed expression at the god's own knowledge.  
  
"And we need one with cup holders because we're gonna die. So, drinks!" Val shook the bottle, taking another long swig.  
  
"What do you say, doctor? Uncharted metagalactic travel through a volatile cosmic gateway. Talk about an adventure." Thor patted his shoulder, comfortingly.  
  
"I don't mean to impose--" Loki spoke up, pausing only when a bottle crashed beside his head on the wall, causing Alex to duck in his lap and give an offending look to Valkyrie. "--but the Grandmaster has a great many ships. I may even have stolen the access codes to his security system." The trickster smirked widely.  
  
"And suddenly you're overcome with an urge to do the right thing?" Val crossed her arms.  
  
"Heavens, no. I've run out of favour with the Grandmaster. And in exchange for codes and access to a ship I'm asking for safe passage... through the anus." Loki explained. Alex snorted into her hand and Loki glared at her.  
  
"You're telling us you can get us access into the garage without setting off any alarms?" The eldest brother questioned.  
  
"Yes, brother. I can."   
  
"Okay, can I just..." Bruce shuffled a little away from the green god. "A quick FYI, I was just talking to him just a couple minutes ago and he was totally ready to kill any of us."   
  
"He did try to kill me."  Val nodded.  
  
"Yes, me too. On many, many occasions. There was one time when we were children, he transformed himself into a snake, and he knows that I love snakes. So, I went to pick up the snake to admire it and he transformed back into himself and he was like, 'blah, it's me!' And he stabbed me. We were eight at the time." Thor explained. Bruce looked at Loki like he was even crazier than the doctor first imagined. Loki suppressed a smile and Callaway just rolled her eyes because basically nothing from the bag of angsty Norse potatoes surprised her anymore.  
  
"If we're boosting a ship, we're gonna need to draw guards away from the palace," Alex spoke up, turning in Loki's lap.  
  
"We're going to start a revolution."   
  
"Revolution?" Bruce raised an eyebrow.  
  
"I'll explain later." Thor nodded.  
  
"Who's this guy again?" Val questioned.  
   
"I'll explain later." Thor nodded again before looking at Alexandra. "Why are you sat in his lap?"  
  
"I'll explain later."


	48. Escape

**Alex's POV**  
"This was not made for people with boobs."  
  
I had never before understood how there was a difference between male and female armour. And now I was learning that difference in a fairly painful way, standing in Loki's chambers in front of a mirror, tugging and pulling at one of his armoured tunics sitting uncomfortably over my chest.  
  
"It can't truly be that uncomfortable, can it?" Loki stood a few paces behind me, watching me fiddle with the tunic armour that was either too tight or too loose wherever it hung on my body's curves.  
  
"You wouldn't know." I rolled my eyes back, watching him raise an eyebrow in the mirror's reflection. Then that reflection gained a smirk. I narrowed my eyes as he took two steps towards me, standing right beside me so I could see his full body length.  
  
And then came the green shimmer.  
  
I blinked as the illusion -or at least I imagined it was an illusion- came over Loki. His hair had grown longer, no longer gelled but instead falling softly into place. The harsh chiselled lines of his jaw were now rounded into much softer ones, and the ice blue of his eyes was a gentler hue. Going down his form, the most noticeable changes were to his hips which gained a more defined curve, and the set of breasts now adorning his chest. Basically, what I was trying to say was, the lanky, green, psycho god, was now a lanky, green, psycho  _goddess_. "You're a..." I turned so I was looking at him/her/them properly rather than through the mirror image, looking their form up and down in one long look. "I... am having some fairly confusing feelings right now." He looked kinda like Hela if I was honest, but somehow even with the missing masculine features of his face, they looked like Loki and retained the classic trickster smirk on slightly rosier lips.  
  
Their form was skinnier and slightly taller than mine, I could tell. "You like me in this form?" Loki raised an eyebrow, crossing their arms over the now ill-fitting tunic adorning their own body.  
  
"I've never been picky." I shrugged one shoulder. They looked surprised by that. I supposed that was because they never went to college. But, with a click of their fingers, Loki's outfit changed to fit their body, and then a second click followed, contouring my own armoured tunic to actually fit me without being so painfully weird looking and feeling. "Thanks." I tugged on the bottom, pulling it straight. Loki changed their form back to the male, and to be honest, I was almost disappointed. Female Loki was hella cute. "You know, if we do get back to Asgard safety and save it and you decide to go straight, you should become a fashion designer."  
  
"Don't mock me, Songbird."  
  
"I'm not." I picked up a set of blades and a holster from the end of the bed, attaching it to my waist. "Seriously, I mean, look at what you did with that dress when we went to Stuttgart."  
  
"I didn't make that. I acquired it." Loki answered.  
  
I raised an eyebrow. "Acquired it?"  
  
"I asked Barton for your measurements and sent out for a dress for you to wear." Loki headed for the door, stripping off his cloak and letting his own new[ blue outfit](https://i.pinimg.com/564x/d8/c3/f9/d8c3f91d553aece90191ecfcfb4c3b43.jpg) on its own. I was left standing and staring after him, surprised.  
  
"You... you bought -well, acquired- me a dress? Like, you seriously did?" I followed him with a chuckle. "Aw. You  _were_ starting to like me back then." I grinned and he rolled his eyes.  
  
"This isn't the time for this. We have a revolution to start."  
  
"We  _are_ going to talk about this, Loki."

  
 **3rd person POV**  
Joining the others at the door to the Sakaarian equivalent of a garage, Alex split off with Bruce and Valkyrie to the Warsong as Loki and Thor went to take over the Commodore.  
  
Stepping into the Warsong, decorated outside with red and white metal wings and accents, Valkyrie slid into the driver's seat, firing up the engines as Bruce took co-pilot and Alex took the back seat. Pushed into their chairs by the g-force when the boosters fired and launched them into the air, Alex tried pulling herself up to see the large hologram of the Grandmaster projected from the palace.  
  
He did not look particularly impressed, but somehow had an excited edge about him. _"Loyal Sakaarians, that Lord of Thunder has stolen my ship and my favourite champion. Sakaarians, take to the skies. Bring him down. Do not let him leave this planet."_  
  
The Warsong rushed into the sky at the same time Thor managed to get the Commodore out of the Grandmaster's garage, avoiding the Palace Patrol who was close on his tail.

The first two ships out of the garage swept around behind Thor, the Commodore a noticably larger ship than Val's Warsong. The Patrol ships began locking their weapons on Thor when both were blown out of the sky by Val, causing the Palace Patrol to explode as they pulled up alongside the Thunder God with a small nod, now flying in tandem.  
  
"Good shot!" Bruce followed the explosions through the window to falling into the trash heap below them.  
  
Thor in the pilot's seat of the Commodore heard Val over the radio order  _"Open the doors."_  Causing the god to flip a switch on the control panel, both entrance doors towards the back of his ship opening up, the air quickly rushing in.  
  
Valkyrie steered down, dropping altitude as the whole ship spun upside down, the cockpit remaining right-side up. "I hope that you're tougher than you look!" She yelled over the windspeed rushing through the ship.

"Why?" Bruce shouted back before Val maxed out the throttle, causing the ship to accelerate until it rested just under Thor's ship. Her hand slammed on a button, and a second later Bruce was no longer in the co-pilot seat but had been thrust up through the roof and into the air with a continuous scream.  
  
Alex watched the doctor with seven PhD's fly up into the Commodore before landing roughly with a thunk on the ship floor before looking out of the open doors down to the small Stark, giving a thumbs up.  
  
"Me next! Me next!" Alex demanded excitedly to the drover. Val smirked and hit another button, and Alex was flung up with a laughing scream and through the opposite door of the Commodore, landing with a thump beside the doctor, laughing happily and getting the feeling of wanting to do it again. That was quickly cut short when the ship suddenly bounced as it was fired at by another couple of Palace Patrols that had caught up to them. "Shouldn't we be shooting back or something?" Alex pushed herself to her feet, wobbly walking to the front of the ship.  
  
"Yes, we should." Thor closed the doors and looked around the control panel. "Where are the guns on this ship?"   
  
 _"There aren't any. It's a leisure vessel. Grandmaster uses it for his good times, orgies and stuff."_ Val responded through the radio.  
  
"Did she just say the Grandmaster uses it for orgies?" Bruce looked ready to vomit.  
  
"Yeah. Don't touch anything." Thor advised as he drove on towards the Devil's Anus.  
  
Alex brushed her hands off on her tunic before trying to keep herself steady without touching any of the walls as they drove on.  
  
Below them, the Warsong was suddenly hit. Val swung the ship around and opened fire, taking out the attacking chase-ship as the cockpit sparked and smoked along with alarms indicating that things were most definitely damaged, but ignored them, and moved to fly on as the Commodore kept up with her. Then a final explosion through the stream of guard ships following Val's Warsong caused the team to pause, and worry even momentarily about the idea that Valkyrie could have been taken with it.  
  
The thought was gone as soon as it appeared as Val herself hit the Commodore ship windshield, grabbing hold with a look of determination. With a smile, Thor continued to pilot the ship out of the city into the Wastelands as six Sakaarian fighter ships raced after them. He swerved the ship as the enemy began to open fire, nearly taking Valkryie down with them.  
  
"Get inside!" Bruce screamed.

"In a minute!" Val pulled herself up and then ran across the roof of the ship, leaping off and landing hard on an enemy ship, beginning to tear at it with her bare hands.  
  
Thor, Alex, and Banner exchanged a look between each other. 

"I should probably go and help." Thor abruptly stood out of the pilot seat, opening the back doors of the Commodore, leaving Banner and Callaway at the ship's controls. "Here, take the wheel."  
  
"No. I don't know how to fly one of these." Bruce shook his head.  
  
"You're a scientist. Use one of your PhDs." Thor ran to the back od the ship, jumping out of a backdoor and out into the air.  
  
"None of them are for flying alien spaceships!" Bruce yelled back over the sound of rushing air.  
  
"Scooch over. I have mild experience." Alex shuffled around him to sit in the pilot's seat, grabbing the steering wheel with only small hesitation over what hygienic state it may have been in.  
  
"You have experience with flying alien spaceships?" Bruce widened his eyes, sitting co-pilot again.  
  
"Mild. Although that was with the Dark Elves one and not a Sakaarian one." Alex mumbled, getting the ship back under control and wiggling between the lines of fire the guards were shooting towards them.  
  
"The  _what_ one?"  
  
Alex waved it off. "Nevermind. Just look for something that looks like a gun." She ducked as more bullets or whatever Sakaarians counted as weapons hit the windshield, trying to keep Thor and Val in her sights as she navigated towards the large red firey hole in the sky.  
  
"That looks like a gun." Banner indicated to a large button, pressing it. Instantly, the ship's lighting changed, like a disco effect. Weird dance music began blasting over the PA, followed by Grandmaster's voice.

 _"It's my birthday! It's my birthday! Birthdaaaaay!"_ Sing the projection that came up by the dashboard, confusing both scientists before fireworks began firing out of the ship followed by confetti and powder paint.  
  
Ships behind them lost themselves in the smokey haze before crashing onto the trash heap below the Commodore. Alex sighed slightly as it seemed to finish off the last of them.   
  
"Good one." Alex nodded and Bruce seemed to agree before Callaway hovered over where Thor and Val had finally managed to take their own ship down together, watching as they leapt through the back doors as a ship crashed and exploded into the ocean behind them. Alex sighed in relief as they joined them up and front. "Guys, we're coming up on the Devil's Anus!" She felt slightly silly for the name but brushed it off as it seemed to be the only way home. "Where's Loki at now?" The mechanic glanced at Thor.  
  
"He volunteered to stay behind. Get everyone on the evacuation ships." Thor thought up quickly.  
  
Alex furrowed her brow, suspicious. "That wasn't what he agreed to."  
  
"Here we go!" Val shouted as Alex guided them towards the portal, the Commodore becoming harder to control as they flew closed before it was suddenly swallowed up by the towering nightmare of a wormhole. The ship's onboard computer shorted out, drowning the team in darkness as the ship creaked and moaned under the increasing strain.   
  
Gravity suddenly got a lot heavier, pushing everyone back either in their seats or towards the back of the ship, pinning them there in extreme pain as the ship began to sound like it was being torn apart. Each of the four periodically passed out from weakest to strongest, closing their eyes and succumbing to the land of the unconscious.  
  
Finally, the Commodore neared the end of the wormhole before being spat out into the calmness of outer space, gravity returning to normal and the lights flickering back on in the hull. Val and Thor dropped to the floor of the Commodore as gravity was no longer holding them up, and Bruce and Alex's bodies relaxed in their seats.   
  
Slowly, Banner was the first to wake up, looking outside at the stars reflected in the windshield. Thor and Valkyrie were next up, standing on shaky legs and walking towards the cockpit. And lastly, Alex, waking up trapped by her seatbelt and stretching out, blinking herself awake and looking outside the window to see the realm of Asgard. From this far out,  the realm represented a flat city in the middle of an island floating in space, a large waterfall dropping off the side and tapering off into the darkness of the wide expanse of space..  
  
"Huh." Alex found her voice back, sitting up with a wince in her seat.  
  
"Huh, what?" Thor raised an eyebrow, looking equally drained from wormhole travel.  
  
Alex cleared her throat before leaning back in her seat with a long, tired sigh. "I don't think I've ever been happier to see that great, gold, glistening cathedral of twats, again."  
  
"Hey!"


	49. Saw you coming

"I thought it'd be nicer. I mean, not that it's not nice. It's just, it's on fire." Banner narrated as the ship descended out of the clouds to see Asgard in ruins. Fires, wrecked buildings and dead soldiers littering the palace and grounds. The four had to consider that the people of Asgard themselves were not in much better shape either.  
  
"Here, up here in the mountains." The thought was quickly dispelled as Alex pointed at a projected map on the console, showing the main structure of the mountain where a stronghold was located. A collection of red dots huddled together indicated where the Asgardian [people were still alive and hiding. "Heat signatures. People clustered together. Hela's coming for them."  
  
"Okay, drop me off at the palace and I'll draw her away." Thor directed as Alex drove the ship down.  
  
"And get yourself killed?"  
  
Thor wasn't fazed. "The people trapped down there are all that matters. While I'm dealing with Hela, I need you three to help get everyone off Asgard."  
  
"How the hell are we supposed to do that?" Bruce asked as Thor headed to the back of the ship, opening one of the backdoors.  
  
"I have a man on the ground." He jumped out, because gods, and disappeared out of sight. The three shared looks, Val sitting up front with Alex as the two guided the ship around the palace and around to the rainbow bridge, spotting a large crowd of refugees spreading out and heading in the direction of the Bifrost. But, looking towards the Bifrost stood a guard dog.  
  
"That's a very big wolf." Alex let slip out as she spotted Fenris guarding the Observatory. The refugees on the bridge turned and started to retreat back to the palace as Fenris charged at them.  
  
Valkyrie managed the guns as Alex got them within range, blasting the wolf who paused in its charge, howling up at the Commodore.  
  
The Asgardians came to another stop on the bridge as they spotted The Executioner with an army of Hela's Butchers in front of them. The people and Heimdall were all trapped on the Bridge between both threats.  
  
The Butchers and Skurge charged towards the people, Alex swinging the ship around to try and hold off the remaining soldiers with gunfire in distraction before the first of the Asgardians clashed with Hela's Butchers, fighting as well as they could against an undead force.  
  
The Commodore turned again, changing its target to Fenris but doing no real damage other than keeping the hound at bay or unintentionally pissing the wolf off. Fenris shook off the bullets with ease before finally managing to resume its charging at the people.   
  
"This stupid dog won't die!" Valkrie yelled out to the others, still attempting to catch it off guard and kill it somehow.  
  
Banner in the back looked down at the carnage below before his eyes met Alex's. The two shared a moment before Banner nodded and headed to the bay doors.  
  
"Everything's going to be okay. I got this. You want to know who I am?" Banner called out to Val before he leapt straight out of the doors. Bruce soared through the air, watched by Val and Alex from the ship above, before he landed flat on the bridge just in front of Fenris, no sign of a change from the scientist they both knew. Alex winced as it looked like he'd broken something... or a lot of things.  
  
Fenris paused in his charge, sniffing around the body, before running again at the people, just before he managed to pick a fight with Heimdall, he was suddenly pulled back by the tail the green beast making his appearance and tackling the larger beast to the bridge, starting a wrestling match that knocked them both off the bridge into the ocean.  
  
Alex wobbled over the controls as a few Butchers managed to somehow jump their way onto the Commodore. Grabbing the controls and swerving around, she all but crashed the ship into the battalion of Butchers, skidding across the bridge and crushing the front line of the Butchers under the weight of the ship, knocking Skurge to the side as they came to a slow screeching stop and Alex nearly gave herself a concussion on the windshield. Thank goodness Sakaarians had the sense for seatbelts, at least.   
  
Both Val and Alex climbed out of the Commodore in their respective fight suits, Alex drawing two blades she'd found in Loki's chambers and Val weaponising her Dragonfang. The two stepped onto the rainbow bridge just as a loud roaring noise erupted through the thick fog surrounding Asgard.  
  
Squinting through the thick, low-hanging fog, Alex could have both jumped for joy and facepalmed as she caught sight of the figure she would recognise anywhere, resplendent in horns, arms spread wide and seeming to float towards the bridge like a fucking psychotic angel of mischief and asshole-ism.   
  
"Your saviour is here!" The God of Mischief and Lies called out proudly, the fog around him fading to reveal the God standing on The Grandmaster's Supercruiser, a much, much larger ship than the Commodore and easily able to fit all of Asgard onboard. The ship parked itself just beside the rainbow bridge, the Ark walkway landing on the bridge and letting him and the prisoners from the Contest of Champions walk down as their protectors.   
  
"Did you miss me? Everybody on that ship, now." The tall, green, slightly insane god ordered, the Asgardian people suddenly pouring onto the ship in panic and relief.  
  
"Welcome home. I saw you coming."  
  
"Of course you did." Loki nodded before turning to spot Alex coming towards him, stopping beside him with an unreadable expression. "I didn't make you worry again, did I, Songbird?" He was smirking again.  
  
Alex shook her head. "You may be a psychotic ball of mischief, Loki, but you're  _my_ psychotic ball of mischief."  
  
Loki laughed and drew his weapons, Alex keeping her own brandished before turning to the loud thunderclap emanating from the palace, seconds before the largest lightning blast she'd ever witness cracked the balcony of the palace, causing two things to fly off in different directions. But the one she focused on was the one buzzing with electricity, crashing down on the bridge into a horde of Butchers.  
  
The two looked at each other, sharing a nod before charging towards the soldiers running to them.  
  
If felt like it had any other time before when they had fought together, working in clear tandem as if they'd been fighting together since childhood. Alex would hold up a Butcher with two knives in his back and Loki would swing his helmet into the undead form, destroying it completely. Alex would make a comment about his helmet and Loki would roll his eyes and break another warrior before it dared touch his Songbird. Then he would trip another to land at Alex's feet so she would strike both blades into its back, watching the light successfully leave its eyes before tossing the body off the bridge.  
  
In less than a minute, the team had drastically reduced the number of Butchers in their path, soon only ending up with one that was quickly destroyed by a lightning blast. Thor caught up to the mischief couple, watching Alex pull Loki off the floor to stand from an attack that took him to the floor.  
  
"You're late," Thor said.

"You're missing an eye," Loki responded.

"This isn't over." Val passed the three, leading them further on the bridge to see Hela had finally picked herself up and now approaching them with menace.  
  
"I think we should disband the Revengers," Thor said, panting ever so slightly as the three readied themselves.  
  
Alex glanced back at the Supercruiser. "We need to hold her off until everybody's on board."  
  
"It won't end there. The longer Hela's on Asgard the more powerful she grows. She'll hunt us down. We need to stop her here and now."  
  
"What's our move?"  
  
Loki looked to his brother with slight worry. "I'm not doing 'Get help.'"  
  
Thor shook his head, Odin's words replaying in his mind as he looked at his home. "Asgard's not a place, it's a people. This was never about stopping Ragnarok. It was about causing Ragnarok." Thor turned to Loki. "The vault. Surtur's crown. It's the only way."  
  
Loki shook his head. "Bold move, brother. Even for me." He turned to run off before twisting back, taking Alex's hand and tugging her to follow back towards the Commodore. "Come on." He guided her back onboard, but before he could slide into the drivers seat, she beat him to it, strapping herself in much to his confusion and slight indignation.  
  
"Hell no. I'm driving." Alex smiled as he begrudgingly sat in the co-pilot seat and Alex lifted them off the ground, flying towards Asgard's palace.  
  
"This is madness." Loki shook his head again.  
  
"No. This is Asgard." Alex smirked at herself as the ship accelerated towards the palace, landing bumpily in the courtyard and letting the two jog from the ship. Alex then followed Loki's lead to the vault, following his winding path inside and letting him grab the chained skull of Surtur from one of the displays. The two headed towards the Eternal Flame, but Loki slowed as he spotted the Tesseract glowing and tempting.  
  
"Don't you fucking dare," Alex growled at him instantly. Loki raised an eyebrow. "I mean it, Loki." She squinted her eyes. He sighed, moving on to the flame and dropping Surtur's Skull into it.  
  
"With the Eternal Flame, you are reborn." He spoke the incantation clearly before grabbing Alex's hand again and running out of the vault with her towards the Commodore, flying out and back to the Supercruiser.

 

"You want Asgard? It's yours." Thor dropped his weapons to the bridge, shouting defeat to Hela as she approached.  
  
"Whatever game you're playing, it won't work. You can't defeat me." Hela stalked closer.  
  
"No. I can't." Thor agreed before gesturing behind him to Asgard quickly growing red. "But he can."  
  
A second later, a full grown Surtur exploded through the roof of Asgard's palace, weirding his flaming sword before crashing it down into the grounds.  
  
"No...  _no_!" Hela screamed before Val drove her Dragonfang through Hela's chest, effectively pinning her to the bridge before Thor blasted her with lightning, sending her falling into the bedrock below.  
  
Alex and Loki moved up the ramp into the Supercruiser before the roar of the Hulk made Loki pause and look to see him charging at Surter. Alex realised Loki had frozen in place before grabbing his forearm and pulling him into the ship.  
  
"Okay. Let's not kick up your PTSD now. Hurry up, Loki." She pulled him inside and into the crowd of people as the final stages of the prophecy were set in place, Thor and Valkyrie finally joining them all and driving the Supercruiser off away from the realm.

 

Everyone watched together in front of the window as Surtur continually drove his sword through Asgard.  
  
"The damage is not too bad. As long as the foundations are strong, we can rebuild this place. It will become a haven for all people and aliens of the universe-" The New Zealand accented alien cut off when a violent detonation of energy flushed out across Asgard, causing the whole realm to split in two, and then shatter to pieces and disappear into the blackness of space. Asgard was officially gone."Nope, those foundations are gone. Sorry." The rock monster apologised to the planet of people behind him.  
  
Thor sighed, shaking his head as he watched his home be destroyed. "What have I done?"  
  
"You saved us from extinction. Asgard is not a place, it's a people." Heimdall looked back at the people gathered behind him, ready for anything he would say. He was now their King, left with not much choice as The Supercruiser floated in front of the chaos that was once Asgard.  
  
The Thunder God sighed again. His home was destroyed, he was left to look after his people, and now they had to find a new home. Where would they go?


	50. Get inside

The Thunder God watched his reflection in the mirror of the Captain's Quarters, fingers trailing over the patch covering his blind eye. His wounds had been bandaged and his armour now squeaky clean. The son of Odin sighed, trying to get used to his reflection as the weight of what he had done fell on his shoulders, weighing him down like cinderblocks to his feet. But it was a weight he was willing to bear to protect his people.  
  
"It suits you." The familiar voice announced from behind him, Thor's eyes glancing in the mirror to his brother's reflection stood by the doorway. The elder smiled and turned to face the younger.  
  
"Perhaps you're not so bad after all, brother."  
  
"Maybe not." Loki could at least consider it after all they'd been through since the beginning of this. He used to be able to brush off such a compliment with a shrug or the idea that Thor would never be right when speaking those sorts of words, but now? Now it was different. Now it was considerable.  
  
"Thank you, Loki." Thor smiled again, picking up a small trinket off the cabinet and tossing it once into the air before catching it again. "If you were really here, I might even give you a hug." Thor tossed the trinket to Loki, who surprised him by catching it, followed by a cocky grin that only that brother could muster.  
  
"I'm here."  
  
The two embraced one another in a hug they had not shared the same way since childhood. It was a warm feeling, secure, like home. They had hugged since childhood, but it had yet to feel the same as it did back then until today.  
  
The brothers pulled back to look at one another, smiling equally.  
  
"I must ask about you and Miss Callaway." Thor started and Loki sighed.  
  
"I swear brother, I have not put her under a lust spell. Her admiration for myself still confuses even me, so you're not alone to question it."  
  
"It's not that." The blond shook his head, causing Loki to look confused. "When you talked of me and Jane:  _'This day, the next, a hundred years. It's nothing. It's a heartbeat'_. I'm glad you see different now that you have shared a love for someone." His brother grinned widely.  
  
"I still believe in that reasoning, Thor. However, though it may be a heartbeat for my lifetime, it is a heartbeat I will gladly cherish for as long as it beats for me."

 

Out on the main deck, Asgardians and Skaarians alike gathered in an assembly as their new King entered, walking through the parted crowd to the hull of the ship. It reminded Thor of his interrupted coronation all those years ago, but instead this time, no cheering and screaming crowds, and in replacement, smiling and humble bowing met him as he walked up to the Captain's chair.  
  
Stood beside him, Hulk, Loki, Valkyrie, Alex, and Heimdall all nodded their heads.  
  
"Your throne." Val smiled, pulling a sheet off the Captain's chair. With only slight hesitation did Thor take his place on it, looking out through the window to the darkness of space.  
  
"So, King of Asgard..." Thor turned around to see the crowd of his people staring back, silently awaiting word from their new King. Heimdall smiled, knowing he was more than ready now. "Where to?"

"I'm not sure. Any suggestions? Miek, where are you from?" Thor asked, noting the lack of robotic exoskeleton on the alien being held under the arm of the giant rock monster.  
  
"Oh, Miek's dead. I accidentally stepped on him on the bridge, I've just felt so guilty I've been carrying him around all day..." Korg mumbled before the pinkish purple alien wriggled back to life in his arms. "Miek, you're alive! He's alive, guys! What was your question again, man?"  
  
Thor looked forward, clearing his throat.   
  
"Earth it is."

 

As the Supercruiser drifted gently through space towards Earth's realm, the large mass of a crowd had dispersed across the ship, awaiting their arrival on yet another foreign planet together. Other members of the team had left to sleep, eat, or otherwise relax until their landing, leaving Alex, Loki, and Thor standing by the large window looking out into outer space.  
  
Loki was the first to break the calm silence. "Do you really think it's a good idea to go back to Earth?"  
  
"Sure! They love me there. And I'm sure Miss Callaway would love to see her father again." Thor smiled at Alex, who gave a thumbs up.  
  
"Let me rephrase: Do you really think it's a good idea to bring  _me_ back to Earth?" Loki reiterated, and the two on either side of him nodded gently, getting what he meant.  
  
Thor patted his brother's shoulder, tenderly. "Probably not. But don't worry brother... I've got a feeling that everything's going to work out."  
  
"Don't say that, you'll jinx us all." Alex crossed her arms, leather armour crinkling slightly under the new position. Then she thought. "Maybe you could go to Miss Foster and Doctor Selvig. I'm sure they'd be able to help everyone get resituated on Earth."  
  
"That's a good idea." The blond smiled and nodded, clasping his hands in front of himself. "I suppose you will be going home to your father."  
  
"Oh boy. I am not looking forward to that one." Alex rubbed her face with one hand before shouting _"Shit!"_ , making the brothers jump in unison.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I left my actual fight suit on Sakaar. Fuuuuuck." Alex groaned into her hands before letting out a muffled sigh and letting her hands fall away. "Oh well. I'll just have to make it again." She groaned before catching Loki's eye. "Not that I'm not enjoying this one."  
  
"I'm sure your father will be delighted to see you again. Along with your smaller brother who likes my helmet." Loki smiled back.  
  
"Why does everyone keep thinking Peter's my brother?" The mechanic furrowed her brow, mumbling, before straightening up again. "When we're back on Earth, you staying with Thor and the others?" Alex didn't know when Thor had slipped away, but the blond was no longer at the raven-haired god's side for this conversation.  
  
Loki shrugged softly. "I'm not sure what else I could possibly do. I'm not exactly a welcome face on Earth, am I?"  
  
"Understandable considering you tried to take over it." Alex raised an eyebrow. Loki didn't flinch, but his eyes flicked way to the window instead of his Songbird. "But..." Alex sang softly, and Loki was instantly suspicious of her tone, eyes narrowing. "...I might have just a little idea about where you can go if you don't want to stay with Asgard."  
  
  
Alex nearly broke a rib from how hard she was pulled and crushed into the protective hold of her father. "Hi, dad." She managed to choke out, patting his back softly to try and get him to get off before he punctured something.  
  
"Alex!" Tony squeezed her hand as if he believed letting go would cause her to be dragged to a fifth planet. "I never thought I'd see you again." He mumbled into her should before finally letting go and letting her breathe with burning lungs. He smiled, hands holding her upper arms with a look of relief. "You're safe." He ruffled her hair in the way that always made her face scrunch in distaste, causing the billionaire to chuckle happily. Then his eyes flicked over to the figure standing behind her. The one he'd yet to notice after being so caught up with seeing his daughter again. And all the relief and happiness flooded out like a drainpipe.  
  
"Hello, Stark." Loki met his eyes with a calm manner, voice too polite for a situation like this.  
  
Tony stood up straight, hands sliding off his daughter's arms and a look that Alex nearly winced at passed over her father's features.  
  
 _'Please don't punch him. Please don't punch him. Please don't punch him' r_ epeated like a mantra in the little mechanic's head. So much to the point that Alex readied herself to catch the flying fist that could have possibly been aimed towards the God. But, somehow, Tony kept his temper restrained.  
  
"What's  _he_ doing here?" Though his tone wasn't without venom as he stared Loki down in the front yard of the new Avengers Headquarters.  
  
"Long story short: Asgard is no more. It got destroyed by a big red glowing thing that was born from a flame with a massive sword and now all people from Asgard as well as people from Sakaar, the planet I spent the last week on, are here. Thor took them to Doctor Selvig's to try and help them rehabilitate here since they have nowhere else to go." Alex explained as well as she could. The Supercruiser had landed successfully just an hour before, a little more than conspicuously beside the school Eric Selvig was currently teaching at. And after a light scuffle about parking outer space vehicles and what kind of parking ticket this ship would qualify for, Eric set about making phone calls to Jane and Alex took Loki home to Headquarters, landing them at the sliding doors her father was currently standing and glaring in.  
  
"Alright. But what is  _he_ doing  _here_?" Tony crossed his arms with an icy glare that would rival Loki's own. But the God remained neutral.  
  
"I want him to live here. With us." Alex announced, hands on her hips. The lanky psycho blinked, same as Tony.  
  
"To be clear, I was unaware this is what she was planning until now." Loki felt the need to point out, which had been true, as Alex had said nothing about her actual plan on the ship before landing, only that she'd had a suggestion.  
  
It didn't stop Tony grasping Alex's wrist and pulling her to him. "You keep the hell away from my daughter, Reindeer Games."  
  
 _Do I just have a glowing sign on the back of my head that says 'grab me?'_ Alex snatched her hand back from her father, rubbing the area that might as well have a permanent bruise.  
  
"It's my home too, dad. I should get a say in who does and who doesn't stay here." Callaway crossed her arms, standing firm.  
  
"Not when it comes to him." Tony gestured at Loki with a waving hand. "He kidnapped you, practically tortured you. You nearly died.  _Multiple times,_  I might add."  
  
"Dad. Can't you get over it? I have." Alex shrugged softly. "Come on. I've... kind of forgiven him. I'm sure you can find it in yourself to look past it and trust me. There, if you don't trust him, trust me."  
  
Tony looked back at the mischevious God. "There's no room in the compound."  
  
"Okay. Then can sleep in my room-"  
  
 _"No, he cannot!"_ Tony cut her off quickly, and Alex fought back a smile at the expected reaction from her father.  
  
Loki cleared his throat, unsure whether speaking was the best idea or not. "If it would make you feel better, I could stay in a cell if they have been built into this compound, to prove I would not do anything untoward to anyone living here." His response was as calm and measured as he could get.  
  
"Didn't stop you the first time with Fury." The billionaire scoffed.  
  
"Tony." Alex narrowed her eyes, scoldingly.  
  
"No. I refuse to let him in my home."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because I said so!" Tony had a sense of deja-vu from the younger kid he'd dealt with from Queens. But this was his daughter. His grown-up daughter. Who had proved multiple times over she could survive without him. And he didn't want to push her away completely over something so... trivial? Giving a long look between his daughter and the god that had kidnapped her but somehow managed to keep her alive too, and now standing by her side as she fought with him to defend her previous kidnapper, Tony took in a long breath, and let it out through his mouth, audibly. "Fine. But if you even so much as touch my daughter, Reindeer Games..."  
  
"I'm afraid its a little too late for that warning, Stark." Loki fought harder than he thought he should need to to keep the smirk off his face. Tony furrowed his brow, looking at his daughter for an explanation as to what the fuck that comment was supposed to mean.  
  
"It's... a long story." Alex tried the traditional excuse. Tony's expression didn't budge an inch. "And I'd rather not stand here long enough for someone on the street to recognise Loki before we've thought of a viable excuse as to why the psychotic god is back on Earth again. Its been a long last few weeks and I need a good sleep and a really big cookie." The mechanic all but whined, rubbing her face with both hands before looking pleadingly at her father with the best puppy eyes she could muster while so tired.  
  
Tony took another few moments to again examine the options. And while he didn't like it in the slightest, he had to at least consider it. It didn't sit right with him, having the vengeful God in his house, and much less because his daughter invited him in. He almost lost his daughter completely to a foreign planet that looks like something psychedelic, drugged-up dream, and now he had the chance to keep her safe again. If Alex trusted Loki now after everything they'd been through together, and it didn't look like Alex was under any influence by the god or outer space forces, he resigned himself to his trust in his daughter who has stuck with him through all of his own stupid decisions.  
  
"Alright." Tony stepped back, slid the glass doors to the building open wide, and nodded. "Get inside. Both of you."


	51. Everything is blue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: No. This story is not finished and sorry this one took so long to upload. College has been keeping me busy. As for where this lies in the timeline of the book itself, we're kind of close to the end but not like two chapters away.

**The next morning - Alex's POV**  
That afternoon had been...  _interesting_ if I had to sum it up in one word. Tony had not stopped or barely wavered on his glares at Loki as we sat down to explain what had happened since Thor all but kidnapped me from the Avengers Headquarters all the way up to getting back here through the... ahem... Devil's Anus.  
  
Yes. I don't like that choice of name. No, I'm not twelve.  
  
Deciding to leave out the romantic sections of mine and Loki's adventure before and during the battle for Asgard was something we silently decided on. It probably wouldn't be the best idea to give my dad yet another panic attack after the twelve he probably had when I managed to tell him I was on an alien planet. And after half an hour of trying to stop my dad making Loki sleep in the detainment cells built into the Headquarters building, he was allocated a room that dad knocked up the surveillance on to eleven with the help of FRIDAY.  
  
It was across the hall from my own room, since dad made it so all the Avengers had a room on the same corridor. He claimed -or more joked- it was because Steve wouldn't be able to navigate but it wasn't as if their falling out had made him change anything about the layout, or actually go into Steve's room since or set it on fire or anything. If something had changed, it was Tony's demand that no one at all touch it or there would be serious consequences. Guess he wasn't as nonchalant about the whole ordeal as he acted. Not that I didn't miss the old man, too. He had always felt like an older brother to me since we met.  
  
But, moving on from past events to current ones, waking up the next morning from our return to Earth was almost relaxing. Sleeping in my own bed had felt weird after sleeping in my one on Sakaar which had been made of a lot more squishy material than my Earth one that I didn't care to ask the origin of. So, waking up somewhere around 7am and asking Friday to turn the darkened windows translucent, admitting light into the room from the wall to ceiling window overlooking the courtyard. I took a shower and changed into my usual band tee and jeans, considering throwing on my lab coat before deciding maybe I needed to take a real day off, maybe even hit the gym and blast music or something.  
  
Heading out into the main building and into the private quarters reserved for the Avengers -and Fury because he just walks wherever he wants- I came into the kitchen area to see Loki already awake and sat at the counter on a stool, sipping a plain white mug and reading a human newspaper. If it weren't for his green and gold Asgardian leather garb, I would have thought he looked undoubtedly like he belonged there.  
  
"Morning." I gave a wave and headed over, sniffing the air and raising an eyebrow. "Did you make coffee?"  
  
"The machine did after hissing at me," Loki explained, turning a page in the paper. I chuckled, imagining his confused expression as he tried to figure out the machine and possibly growling and using magic on it in the end as he gave up, and headed to pour myself a mug full.  
  
"So, how's your morning been so far?" I asked, pouring.  
  
"Your father put salt in my coffee this morning, so I would say fairly well."  
  
I put the kettle down, turning to the god. "He put salt in your coffee?"  
  
"Yes. But I wouldn't worry. I returned the favour... in a way." The corner of his mouth twitched into a smirk. I narrowed my eyes. That smirk had never been good.  
  
"What did you...?" I stopped myself at the sound of approaching footsteps. I didn't have long to guess who it was before Tony rounded the corner looking... well... not happy. I covered my mouth, coughing to stifle the first onset of giggles that threatened to escape at my dad's predicament. I coughed again, clearing my throat and taking a few shallow breaths. "Dad? Wow. You look... cold." I bit my lip hard to stop the laugh.  
  
"I have meetings this morning. I could've done without this." Tony gestured urgently to his face looking directly at Loki, indicating his usually slightly tanned skin now having taken on a dyed blue hue from, well, dye. Presumably from the shower gel that he used this morning.  
  
"I could have done without sodium chloride in my drink but I suppose this morning has gone neither of our ways, has it?" Loki finally looked over from the paper to the billionaire, taking a long, leisurely sip from his mug before making a small 'ah' noise and putting the mug back down.  
  
Tony's face twitched, gritting his teeth and pointing at Loki with a look of contained fury. "We're having words later." He then turned the wagging finger on me. "You, stop."  
  
"I didn't even say anything," I whined back at him, holding my hands up. Tony sighed through his nose, straightening his suit jacket and AC/DC shirt.  
  
"I've got to go. I'll see you both when I get back." He pulled his sunglasses out of his pocket, putting them on to try and distract anyone from his blue face before turning and disappearing down the hallway.  
  
"Bye, Papa Smurf!" I called down the hallway after him.  
  
 _"Alexandra!"_  Echoed back up the hall and I laughed, picking up my drink again and twisting to Loki who's attention was back to his newspaper. "Blue dye in his shower gel? Really? Dude, I was doing that in high-school. Step up your game a little." I knew I was basically encouraging him but honestly, I would expect better from the God of Mischief.  
  
"I did not want to push the boundaries too far. Especially after you took so long to convince your father not to throw me in a cell." His blue eyes flicked up to mine, and my humour faded, rubbing the back of my head and glancing off to the side.  
  
"Oh. You heard that, huh?" It had been an aside conversation after dad all but stormed out to go do other things after our official sit-down together.  
  
Loki flicked a page in the newspaper. "I would be surprised if not everyone in this compound had heard the argument."  
  
I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Shut it, Mischief." I sounded harsh but that was mainly to move attention from my slightly pink cheeks. His gentle smile told me he understood. Then my eyes fell on his drink as something clicked in my mind. "Hang on. Is that the same drink that had the salt in it?"  
  
"Indeed." The god nodded.  
  
"Then why are you still drinking it?" I asked like the man was insane. He just kept his cool expression, taking another long sip from the mug before placing it down again. I shook my head and huffed a laugh, moving around to the island counter to sit across from him. "Salty cuppa for a salty bitch, apparently," I muttered.  
  
Loki opened his mouth, then seemed to think better of his words and try again. "I would reply but it wouldn't be proper to disrespect you in your own home."  
  
"Because that's ever stopped you before. In fact, last time you were in my house, you tossed me off the side of the building."  
  
"I thought you said you forgave me for that, yesterday."   
  
"I did, I did. I'm just teasing." I settled on a pull-out stool, glancing down at the newspaper between us. It was dated as yesterday so at least it was up to date. "So... human newspaper, hm?"  
  
"I didn't bring many books with me." Came the response of the bored-sounding God.  
  
"Many or any?"  
  
"Many. I did bring  _a_ book with me."  
  
"Really? Which one did you steal from Sakaar? I brought my notebook from there back with me since it was in my fight gear." I questioned quickly, leaning closer on folded arms on the counter.  
  
"It was not from the Sakaarian library," Loki responded, flicking through the real estate section and to the small ads.  
  
"Where was it from then?" I tilted my head softly. Loki didn't respond much further than a dismissive shrug. I rolled my eyes. "Okay, then." I sat up straight, fingers tapping around the material of the mug as my eyes flicked around the kitchen common room, trying to think of something to do other than throw myself straight back into my lab. "There's a library here, you know. I didn't manage to give you the grand tour yesterday. Fancy a walk around?"  
  
"I have spent this morning avoiding other agents and members of staff in the building. Do you think they won't recognise me?" He posed a fair point. And though I'd give it some thought, I didn't really have much of a solution for that one.  
  
"As long as you're walking with me, they won't raise a hand against you. And if any of them have any complaints, they can face me." I stood up, finishing my drink quickly and putting the mug on the side to wash later.  
  
Hearing Loki mutter, "How intimidating." from behind me made me pause to look back at his amused expression.  
  
"You think its funny but trust me, you haven't seen me at work in my own lab. You don't understand how scary I can get."  
  
"Perhaps I shall see later." His smirk was back, standing and folding the newspaper with the grace of a prince before joining me at my side.  
  
"I don't think its something you want to see." I crossed my arms before starting to lead him out of the private common area and into the more public areas of the building.  
  
"You may be surprised, Songbird."


	52. Turf wars

_"Don't touch that."_  Loki took a step back from the wall display, fingers leaving the cold metal of a forgotten project like they were burned, only to land on the next neglected design on the wall and met with _"Or that."_  
  
"This is not very amusing, Songbird." The god sighed, turning to the mechanic leaning over her desk with a bent back, goggles resting atop her head with small smudges on her cheeks.  
  
The soldering iron hissed as it melted the metal wire in her hand. "Quiet. I'm trying to concentrate."  
  
If Loki had to compare his Alex to any animal on the planet, he would have chosen a kitten. Not because of her beautiful forest green doe eyes, and not because of her almost feline-like smile, but because as they walked down the hallway of the Avengers Headquarters side-by-side, she practically hissed and growled at any agent who dared whisper or even look at Loki in any way other than a passing glance. And so, in his mind, she was now comparative to an angry kitten.  
  
"If you are not going to allow me to enjoy myself, Songbird, I would prefer to be somewhere else." Loki was bored, no doubts. Regardless of the fact that as Alex had been sent a welcome home message from Peter as well as a design concept he had been working on that made her rush straight to the lab, and so now he was in her place of thinking that he had been curious of since this morning, the fact he wasn't allowed to touch and or practically do anything was not interesting. "I would suggest the library you showed me earlier. Or outside for a walk." Clasping his hands behind his back, he approached the desk in stride.  
  
"You know we can't do that until we announce you." Alex barely spared him a glance as she melted the wire into the mini arc-reactor as a protective sealant. "And I told you, this is  _my_ domain. So shush and listen to me. You said you brought a book back, read that. Or go to the library yourself unless you need me to walk you everywhere like your personal nanny." The bite in her voice was as if she were talking to a small child with intelligence issues.   
  
Loki bristled lightly at the tone. "No need to be so vicious." He muttered away from the mechanic.  
  
That got Alex's attention, green eyes snapping up to his own so quickly it was almost a shock. Slightly squinted eyes underlined by the splotches of freckles he was so oddly fond of, she looked... irritated, was the word that sprung to mind. Not an emotion Loki was uncommon with from Alex, especially in a working condition, but he couldn't really understand why she was so stressed out in  _her own_ working conditions. Conditions that he was not presently finding much more than dull.  
  
"What was that, Mischief?" The brunette tilted her head, tone perfectly steady and controlled.   
  
"You heard me perfectly well, Songbird. Since you've made it abundantly clear I am restricted to wherever you go, I wanted to go somewhere else with you. And you snapped at me."  
  
"And you heard me perfectly well this morning when I warned you about being in my lab. Entertain yourself." And the mechanic's eyes were back on the wire and arc-reactor in less than a heartbeat, making the Norse god consider defeat for even the slightest of moments.   
  
"I keep trying to entertain myself but you keep  _reprimanding_ me for it." He hadn't used his silver tongue in a while, but it seemed to still have the desired effect as he noticed the short pause in Alex's hands as she turned the iron off and picked up the flathead screwdriver. "I told you that I wanted a life on Earth like a regular Midgardian. And I would say that the requests I'm making are completely human to have and want. Boredom is a common human emotion, correct?" Alex squinted her eyes as his fingers skimmed over her new notebook. "Take a break from your work. Get some fresh air. Read a book with me in the library." He smiled gently at her with soft eyes and soft commands.  
  
"No, no, no, no. I don't think so, Loki. You don't tell me what to do here. This is my lab, Mischief. You follow  _my_ rules when you're in here." Alex raised the screwdriver, waving it slightly. It seemed she had gotten used to listening out for his silver tongue. And she seemed stubborn as to stay in the lab. But with the closeness of the tool in her hand, he had one last trick to try.  
  
"I'd rather you didn't wave that in my face, Songbird." His fingers brushed the metal, leaning closer as he gently pushed down on the tool to simultaneously bring Alex closer to his own face. From this distance, Alex could see the full study of his eyes. They seemed more... green than she previously recalled. When had that happened? "What was that about following your rules, Alex?" His lips barely ghosted over hers with each syllable, a delicate whisper to his words. Alex's eyes flicked to his lips then back up to his eyes again, and Loki felt a smirk twitch at his mouth.  
  
The cold blade of the screwdriver was pressed to his lips. "My lab."  _Tap_. "My law."  _Tap_. "You can't charm your way back into control - not here. You're in  _my_ house now, Mischief. So you better watch that Silver Tongue of yours because you're following my rules this time." Alex gained the smirk instead, pulling away from Loki's face to stand and cross her arms perfectly smugly. Loki ignored the not-unpleasant shiver that threatened to creep down his spine for reasons unknown to himself. However, after a while of watching the smirking mechanic and finally realising she wasn't going to budge, he sighed and gave in to defeat, wandering over to a stool by a -somehow- clear workbench, slumping down and resting a cheek on his fist.  
  
Alex dropped her crossed arms, satisfied she'd been able to win out against the now sighing and pouting god with her stubborn antics, and went back to working on the arc-reactor project.  
  
But there was only so much of looking and listening to a sighing and pouting God of Mischief that any one person could take.  
  
"Look, give me fifteen minutes and I'll take you somewhere else, okay? I promise to sort everything out with dad tonight." Alex compromised and Loki looked up from the workbench, eyes sparkling back to life.  
  
"Fifteen minutes. I am counting." He gave a nod.  
  
"Good. Might finally stop you complaining about being bored now that you have something to do."  
  
  
  
Tony's lab was not far from Alex's. The Headquarters was widespread but both Stark's labs were on the same floor, so only a few minutes down a long hallway filled with doors leading to various supply rooms lead out into Tony's area where he was working at his screens while fixing a project on his desk with a laser.  
  
"Hey, dad." Alex all but skipped over in her white lab coat, having managed to wrestle it out of a whining Loki's hands before sending him to bed at the late hour.  
  
The project fizzled and hissed. "Ow!" Tony dropped the laser, shaking out his hand from the shock before turning to Alex and waving his uninjured hand.  
  
"What are you doing?"  
  
"Thermonuclear regulation modules for the suit. Something Banner sent over some schematics for and I've been checking them out." He powered down the project and picked up a scrap of material, beginning to wipe his hands. "What's up?"  
  
"I think I need to talk to you about Loki and the plan to... divulge him to the rest of the world."  
  
"Yeah, I've been working on some speech points. Wanna hear some? I got some." Tony opened a drawer, pulling out cue cards along with a pair of reading glasses Alex accused him of being too vain to wear and leaned back against the desk. " _'Even though he tried to maim and kill most of us, the Avengers are still for some reason letting this lunatic back on earth because, hey, letting the villain go has never gone wrong before, right'?_ "  
  
"Tony-"  
  
"No, no. I've got a better one. I've got more." Tony flicked the cards over. " _'We are disregarding any ties Thor/Point Break has with Reindeer Games under the clear guidelines that Loki is, in fact, adopted. Who would have guessed it, hm?'"_  
  
"Ok, Tony, I get what you're-"  
  
"Or, or,  _'Didn't you know? Psycho is the new sexy'_."  
  
"Tony. That's enough." Alex crossed her arms, irritably. "You're not being fair."  
  
Tony dropped the cards on the desk. "Not being fair? How am I not being fair? I'm just trying to ease the crowd in with a few witty punchlines. I think he deserves the teasing especially if you think the world is actually going to accept him back for a second round."  
  
"So, what, you don't think he's capable of redemption just because he did a bad thing? Granted a big-ass bad thing but still. You used to make weapons and nearly caused World War Three before you were kidnapped to Afghanistan and yet you got the chance to turn it all around and instead destroy the people you once saved." Alex shrugged, hands sliding into her coat pockets.  
  
"That is not a fair comparison." The elder Stark crossed his arms, shocked she'd even bring that up. Alex usually actively avoided talking about Afghanistan out of respect for Tony's anxiety.  
  
"Oh, isn't it? I would have thought that that was a very fair comparison. You fucked up, on a global scale no less, and you got to redeem yourself. Why can't you let him do the same?" Callaway crossed hers to match.  
  
"Why are you of all people believing that Loki, the literal God of  _Mischief and Lies_ , has a good side? What makes you so sure he won't try it again if he gets the chance?" His question made Alex pause. She hadn't really expected her father to take the whole thing seriously since 'inviting' Loki into his home, but still, she expected him to have at least a little more humility.  
  
"I've spent more time with him than you have, I have more experience about what he's like. He's not so insane when he's not taking over planets. I fought with him twice to save and then destroy Asgard and he watched my back each time much like anyone on the team would have done. He' saved my life during the fight for New York and on the Dark World and Sakaar too. I know him better than you, I've earned his trust." The Songbird tried to explain as best she could. "And I may have even developed some form of friendship towards him. And some... romantic feelings towards him, too." The ending ended as a mumble, trying to brush past the point so Tony wouldn't hear it. Unfortunately, the moment of eye contact forced between them a moment later told her she had been heard.  
  
"Oh." Is what tumbled out of her father's mouth with a slow nodding motion. Alex winced, biting the inside of her mouth as she watched her dad slowly nod as he mulled over the words in his mind. "Oh." He repeated in the same monotone, continuing to nod and give Alex next to no indications of what else he was thinking or if he'd short-circuited in his brain completely.  
  
Callaway glanced between her father and the door. "You're acting unnaturally calm. Should I start running now?"   
  
Tony removed his glasses and rubbed at his eyes, head shaking. "No, no. I'm just, uh... I'm just trying to comprehend that my daughter is going insane."  
  
"Oh boy. Here it comes." She muttered at the floor, eyes squeezing shut as she prepared for the longest lecture of her life.  
  
But that didn't happen. What did, in fact, happen instead was a snort. A stifled noise. Alex cracked open one eye, looking at her father clearing his throat and forcing away a smile. "Are you- are you laughing at this, Tony?" She furrowed her brow, both eyes open now.  
  
"No." He was. "This is terrible. Why would I be laughing?" The eldest mechanic continued to force away his chuckles as he spoke but his voice wavered in pitch. "This is very terrible. It is. It is so terrible." Both hands rubbed over his face before tugging his hair. "You. Fallen in love with a Norse god. This is... this is... Jesus." His volume dropped to a whisper, giggles stopping.  
  
Alex approached him. "Look, it's a long story, okay?"  
  
"'Long story?' Oh, no, no, no. You're not getting out of this with an 'its a long story', Alex. Hell no. Not this." Tony walked to stop a few steps in front of her. "What the hell are you thinking?"  
  
"I'm thinking that I'm crushing harder than a schoolgirl on a Norse deity and  _you're_ not helping by calling me crazy. And what I'm thinking is that he is a good person- god-  _being_ and I definitely know him a hell of a lot better than your judgemental ass does."   
  
"You are in love with the man that kidnapped you, nearly killed you twice, is responsible for the fuel to some of your nightmares and you think you love him." Tony berated as Alex scoffed and started pacing in front of him. "He is a god and you are a mortal. Apologies if that makes me think you might be the slightest bit unhinged and I don't understand why you 'love' him."  
  
"You think I don't know that? I am fully aware of what he is and what I am compared. And guess what dad? I couldn't give any less of a shit!" The child raised her voice. Tony opened his mouth to speak. "No, you listen this time. Yes, I'm aware he kidnapped me and tried to take over the Earth by stealing and controlling the Tesseract for another ulterior motive that I am still yet unaware of by the way, I know that he nearly killed me a shed load of times and I wouldn't have had even a second to stop him, but I don't care. I have defended him from being beheaded by his own planet. I believed he was dead for three years before Thor dragged me up to Asgard for the second time and got lost on a planet that was like the outwards personification of a pretty damn hard mushroom trip and he was there both to mock me and make me feel safe. He's done more than made up for everything and was and apparently still is fully willing to kneel at my feet and beg for my forgiveness which is more than I can say for any man I've ever dated before. He makes me feel something violent inside, yet he somehow makes me feel serene at the same time." Callous hands pulled at her hair, Alex trying to keep her temper intact and holding her heartbeat level as low as possible. This was not the time for another episode. She wasn't making this speech again. Her hands released their grip, falling lax to the sides. "Maybe I'm being melodramatic. Or maybe I just want to love someone else for once.  But it's my choice, not yours. You can't coddle me forever, dad, no matter how much you want to." Her eyes fell to the floor, a small sigh escaping her lips. Tony's gut clenched at the sound of his daughter's voice sounding so vulnerable.  
  
"I-"  
  
"Even if this is a big mistake, a gargantuan one, a mistake of monumental proportions, for the gods' sakes, just let me make it." The girl pleaded, tone growing tired as she looked at her father, exhaustion from the after-effects of Sakaar and Asgard finally emerging. " _Please_."  
  
Tony was silent. It was one of the very few times in his life that he didn't know what to do. It was a question between protection and faith. Have faith in his daughter or succumb to the parental sentiment of protecting his daughter. But she was right. He couldn't coddle her forever and she wasn't a little baby anymore.  
  
"Okay, kiddo." Tony nodded, taking a step closer to the smaller mechanic and opening his arms. Alex stepped forward and into his arms, clinging to his greased-up shirt. "Alright. You trust him, fine. I'll... well, I can't say I get why, but I'll try to understand it later. And you're right, it is your choice, not mine." He wrapped his arms around her, holding her as close as he could. "We'll hold a press conference tomorrow morning before announcing a holiday, give the press a few weeks to simmer and throw all they have at closed doors."  
  
Alex sighed into his shoulder, body relaxing. "Love you, dad."  
  
"Love you too, kiddo." He kissed her temple softly. "Let's just hope the world feels the same way tomorrow."


	53. Bagel

The day of the press conference came sooner than perhaps everyone in the compound who knew what this day would entail would have liked. Tony had his notes and his charm, and Alex had her Loki and her gut... for now, at least.  
  
An early Monday morning in September. The sky was clear, the air was crisp, and the breeze held soft, only gently fluttering the leaves of the trees surrounding the compound that Alex could see from her window. It seemed like a day that would bring luck. And Alex wasn't usually one for God worship, but if there was a God of Luck, be it Norse or otherwise, she was praying to them as strongly as her morning coffee and said a quick 'hey' to her dad as he sped after Pepper with his cue cards in hand. She sincerely hoped he didn't actually decorate his speech with the lines she had heard yesterday. But, as she was constantly reminded, her father did whatever he wanted. And so she could never be blamed for stuff she did because she did that too.  
  
Or at least that had been her go-to argument in the past with her dad when in trouble for lack of impulse control.  
  
Regardless, the brunette headed down the corridor all the way to the farthest end, knocking on the door and entering to see Loki reading a book beside the transparent windows. Classically, he was dressed in his Sakaarian outfit.  
  
The god was quickly interrupted from reading and nudged towards the shower with a towel by the insistent mechanic as he had to  _'get ready to make a good impression on the world you once tried to take over. And if I have to get dressed up, so do you. No, that hot-body leather ensemble doesn't count.'_. Loki insisted he could handle showering himself because he was well aware of what hygiene was, he was still a prince, after all. Callaway had rolled her eyes and closed the door behind him.  
  
"I need to go get dressed. I'll be back in a while, okay?" Alex began shucking off her lab coat, folding it over her arm as she planned out her next outfit in her mind.  
  
"Understood." Was called back through the wall.  
  
The young mechanic nodded, heading out of the room to her own to pick out her own outfit. "FRIDAY, do me a favour and make sure he doesn't drown himself please." She mumbled at the ceiling, receiving an Irish-accented confirming response, pulling out matching suit pants and a blazer, and straightening out her hastily thrown-up hair so it ended just below her shoulders.  
  
Loki showered quickly, with the direction of Friday informing him how to lower the blazing temperature Tony usually set as custom to somewhere more tolerable for Jotun blood, and stepped out, drying off before changing himself into his regular black suit since his other ‘ensemble’ was deemed inappropriate by his Songbird. A quick style of the hair to make it look less like a birds nest, a small chuckle at drawing the correlation to Barton in his mind, before stepping out into the bedroom to wait.   
  
Alex pulled at her blazer sleeves. She didn't remember her arms being this long the last time she tried it on. However, her last press conference or public appearance had been a while ago, she supposed. So, walking back to Loki’s room, tugging the back of her flats with a finger to adjust them before knocking and hearing a soft  _'come in'_ from the other side, the mechanic stepped inside and smiled at the God looking ready to go.  
  
"You look good. You look human, actually. That's good, right now."  
  
"I may look human, but as much as you may not like to acknowledge it, Songbird, remember that I am not." Loki stood from the bed and walked to stand in front of her.   
  
Alex raised an eyebrow. "You may say that but surprisingly, Loki, you're actually a lot more human than several people I know."  
  
Loki’s face furrowed as he demanded “take that back," causing Alex to chuckle.  
  
"Not a chance, Mischief.” Alex smiled and caught the smirk that twitched at the corner of the God’s mouth in humour. “Come on. The conference is starting soon.” She tugged him towards the door by the sleeve.  Loki followed her, changing the grip to hold her hand instead as she led him out and into the kitchen area, pouring two mugs of coffee and toasting a bagel, sliding it to Loki.  
  
”Have you eaten this morning?” Loki picked up one side, taking a small bite and wiping his lips.  
  
”Okay, now remember, don’t try to antagonise anyone. People already don’t like you very much so as long as you say pretty much nothing and don’t call anyone a ‘pathetic mortal’ or ‘ant under a boot’ we should be fine.” Alex pulled out her phone, texting rapidly. "Or 'mewling quim' for that matter. Although you might think it is a nice way to say it, 'whining cunt' is not a thing people enjoy being compared with."  
  
”Have you eaten this morning?” Loki repeated as Alex send off texts, sliding her phone in her blazer before smoothing it down. She did a double-take at her sleeve and cursed quietly at a loose thread, starting to rummage through a kitchen drawer filled with various things and no true purpose.  
  
”Also, dad might make a few inappropriate jokes so, as much as they might be at your expense, try your best not to murder him. And believe me, I’ve been through the same experience so you’re not alone. In fact, you might even have to hold me back from punching him if he says the wrong thing.”  
  
Loki finished the first slice of the bagel. ”You’re ignoring me, clearly, so I believe the answer to my question is no.” He crossed his arms over the counter.  
  
“I’m busy.” She threw over her shoulder, finding a needle and thread and sorting the loose thread sticking out on the blazer sleeve, sewing it back inside. Not naturally a narcissist, Alex would pride herself on saying, but today was an important day, and even the smallest things were going to annoy her.  
  
“And so, we are not going to the conference.”  
  
Alex's head snapped up.  _”What?”_  
  
”We are not going to the conference unless you yourself eat something.” Loki kept his arms folded. “That is my condition, Songbird.”  
  
”Loki, I am really busy right now. And you don’t dictate my diet, thank you. I don’t have time-“  
  
”-to sit for two minutes and have a bagel, at least?” He raised an eyebrow. Alex sighed, teeth gritting, and put the needle on the side before she accidentally stabbed herself. “I will not move from this chair until you eat what is on this plate.” The plate in question was slid across the counter, the other side of the toasted item sitting proudly buttered in an offering. The mechanic took a deep breath, trying not to lose what patience she had left that morning and ignoring the vibration from her blazer pocket, opting to glare at the God instead. “I am very patient, you’ll find. And this event was your idea, not mine. It is your own time and opportunity that you’re wasting.” His natural smirk pulled at his lips, knowing he was in a winning battle.  
  
”Have you been talking to dad behind my back? You’re starting to sound an awful lot like him.”  
  
”Alex.” Loki hissed. Callaway inwardly winced at the use of her real name. It was a rarity, even since the kidnapping. He'd only ever said it when they were having their 'serious' talks. “If you faint in the middle of this conference, it will not be good. If you haven’t slept well recently, you can at least try to eat well to make up for the lack of.”  
  
”How could you possibly know..?” Alex hadn't mentioned not sleeping well last night. She narrowed her eyes at him, but Loki only met her gaze with a softer one, a calmer one, and it started to soften the mechanic, slowly. Alex felt the fight leaving her, the stress of the morning slowly dissolving before she gave in completely to his green eyes,  _like juniper berries_ her mind supplied helpfully, and picked up the bagel, taking a big bite. “You know me too well.”  
  
”Perhaps.” He avoided commenting on her talking with her mouth full. He had been the one to nag, after all. So, Loki instead watched her eat every bite of the bagel, narrowing his eyes every time she seemed to remember something and speed up suddenly. It would do her no good to choke. But eventually they reached the end of the food item without needing a Heimlich manoeuvre and Loki stood from his chair. “Come along, then. I’ll entertain your father and his crowd for the day.” He offered his arm to her, much like the night in Stuttgart, and Alex took it happily, steadying her breathing as they made their way out to the courtyard where the two dropped arms and assumed the positions to try and persuade the world that Loki was not actually that bad of a bad guy.  
  
  
As it turns out, it was equally easy and hard to convince an audience of Midgardians of that fact. With the help of Tony's spectacular manipulation of language, getting the idea across that Loki was staying on Earth honestly could have gone a lot worse. Only one reporter's microphone was tossed at Tony and his podium, easily dodged of course. But, even with an uproar from the crowd as the news broke from the billionaire's mouth, he managed to keep them tamed enough to listen to reasoning and the restrictions that would be taken with Loki to live at the compound under supervision.  
  
Insults and other rude comments about judgement and sanity were ironically thrown at the group, but who cared? It was the norm for any Stark to face. And with her father saying all but 'fuck you, we do what we want', the press conference quickly closed. Tony, Pepper, Alex and Loki all walked back inside to the soundtrack of reporters screaming questions and creative curses before the doors shut on them and shut them up.  
  
After a mild scolding from Pepper and listening to the sound of her heels disappearing down a corridor to deal with the flurry of phone calls incoming on her phone from this little stunt, the remaining three wandered back through the main base of the compound.  
  
"That was dramatic." The first thing to be said by any of them for a good two minutes of silent walking.  
  
"That's what it means to be a Stark, Loki." Alex smiled at him before turning to her father. "How was that for you?"  
  
"Well, if the UN wasn't already mad because of the Sokovia Accords, they're definitely going to have something to complain about now. But, they can deal with it. Announcing that a psychotic-"  
  
"Sociopathic."  
  
"- _sociopathic_ Asgardian son of a bitch God is staying at Avenger's Headquarters with no warning is going to jolt some people in the world, sure. The press seemed happy with the new story since things have calmed down lately and they were basically just scrambling for scraps until now. So we can expect that for the rest of the next week, at least, they're gonna try to slander my ass off across the globe for what I just did." Tony folded his arms, not looking that put-out for someone who described their week's events so dryly.  
  
"Hm. So a regular Monday, then?" Alex replied, smiling.  
  
Her grin was too smug for its own good, her father decided. "Come here." Tony dragged her into a hold, rubbing her head like he was ruffling a dog's fur.  
  
"Nooooo!" Alex whined, pulling away as much as Tony's grip would allow. "Get off of meeeee." She batted her hands at him before he finally let go, disgracing what time she had spent straightening it this morning. Alex huffed, patting down her hair and glaring at Loki who had been no help whatsoever and was now trying and failing to hide a smirk. He let out a short chuckle and Alex whined, crossing her arms with a pout aimed specifically at him.  
  
Then the rhythmic beat of a vibration was heard. Alex furrowed her brow at her father. "For once, it's not mine." Tony held up his hands. Alex pulled out her phone, checking the ID before answering with a smile.  
  
 _"Channel News, huh? That's one way to do it."_  Rosaline's voice on the other end announced. The mechanic rolled her eyes but thanked her. _"Congratulations, sis. Finally ready to admit your feelings to me yet or do I need to wait another few months for you to decide you did, in fact, like him like that?"_  
  
"Yeah, yeah, you were right. I was wrong. You told me so. What do you want, a cookie?"  
  
 _"I'd love one. I might bake some in celebration, actually. Mum's out so I can get away with not putting carrots in them. Chocolate chip high, here I come!"_ Alex chuckled at her friend, noting Tony having disappeared but Loki remaining and watching.  _"But seriously, girl, good to see you're alright and not in outer space, still."_  
  
"Thanks. You too. I'll call you later, Ro. Meet for coffee, sometime soon?"  
  
 _"Sounds like a plan. By the way, is Steve-"_  
  
"Bye!" Alex shut off the call, sliding her phone into her back pocket before smiling at Loki, softly. "You feeling alright?"  
  
"Why would I not be?" The God raised an eyebrow.  
  
Alex crossed her arms, more hugging herself than making an angry gesture. "I heard what a few people in that crowd were saying about you. And I know you heard them too."  
  
"You truly think I care about being insulted by others? Have I not already told you about growing up on Asgard in my brother's shadow?" The two stopped walking, on a corridor with no other agents, silent save for the usual hum of electricity from the overhead lights. "I was more focused on what they said about you. Many were calling you crazy and a fool. A few already have suspicions of us, too, it seems."  
  
"They're stabbing in the dark with that one. But being crazy and a fool isn't too far off, I suppose."  
  
Loki lifted her chin with two fingers with a gentle whisper of _"Don't."_  close to her lips. Alex looked at him, eyes running over his face, flicking down to his hand then back up again.  
  
"You're being really affectionate today, you know that?"  
  
Loki leaned away and pulled his fingers back as if burned. "I don't have much experience with this kind of relationship. I'm not sure what you expect of me." He began to fidget with his left hand as his eyes fell to the floor.  
  
"Neither do I. I'm not complaining, just pointing it out." Alex tried to lessen his doubt. "And I don't 'expect' anything of you. Just go with what you feel is right or nice. We're both just kind of feeling this out." The mechanic leaned up on her tiptoes, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek. She saw the smile slowly returning to his face as he looked at her again. Alex quietened for a moment in thought. "Maybe we should go on a proper date at some point."  
  
"A proper date?"  
  
"You know, the thing where two people go out or do an activity together to try to get to know one another better."  
  
"I know what a date is, Songbird. I just wondered what kind of date you would prefer." Loki scoffed and laced their fingers together as the two began wandering again down the corridor.  
  
"Let's stick with something simple the first time, maybe. We could watch a film and have dinner together in the compound or something." Alex gently swung their arms as she walked.  
  
Loki smiled. "That sounds pleasant."  
  
"Great." Alex nodded with a grin, feeling the tension from before roll off her shoulders. They were quiet until the end of the corridor, turning to head towards the public cafeteria. "What book were you reading before I interrupted you?"  
  
"A romantic novel. A plotline regarding soulmates and such. You as humans have funny ideas on how love works." The God explained with a small grin.  
  
"I don't believe in that kind of stuff. Do you?"  
  
"Never say never, is my thought on the matter."


	54. Allow it

**3rd Person POV - later that evening**  
"Do you guys even drink regular earth stuff like coffee or should I put out a call for mead?" Tony wandered into the private kitchen area with the Thunder God following behind, umbrella missing as he donned his regular earth clothes.  
  
"Yes, I well versed in the drinks of Earth, Stark. You forget I've lived for many years longer than you." Thor chuckled, taking a seat at the island counter as Tony started on drinks, mumbling about coffee grounds in the disposal before finally settling on two fresh mugs and sliding one to the blond, who took it happily. "What did you want to talk about?"  
  
"Did you know that your brother and my daughter are dating?" Tony didn't bother with the pretence. Thor paused mid-sip. "Cause I didn't. Bit of a surprise to my system, if I'm totally honest."  
  
Thor gently put his mug back down, speaking softly. "I was only aware of that fact a few days ago, on our escape from Sakaar-"  
  
"Yeah, yeah, the big palace thing that looks like a unicorn vomited. Alex explained." Tony stayed standing on the other side, glad for the height difference for once as Thor sitting made those few inches difference. "I understand that maybe you would be happy that your brother actually found someone to love his reindeer ass but me? Not so much, considering the circumstances and the past between the two. Does Loki know how to mind control someone without the Tesseract?"  
  
"Reindeer ass? He hasn't got a... Why would you not be happy about this? Should you not be happy that your daughter has found something to love other than you?" The blond raised an eyebrow. Tony squinted his eyes at him. Thor sighed. "I do understand the concern, Stark. Loki is... well, he's Loki. And I must admit, even being the brother I grew up with from the age of a child, he and his is still somehow a mystery to me. And no, he doesn't possess the powers to manipulate someone's feelings for long periods of time. If he were controlling your daughter, either she or someone around her would have noticed the changes. Your daughter is very strong in that regard, as she has proved countless times before, in battle and in conference."  
  
"In conference?"  
  
"Alexandra is very... verbally skilled, may I say?" Thor couldn't hide a smile. Tony snorted a laugh in agreement. "And a warrior at heart, both of heart and mind. And if she is brave enough to save Loki's life on numerous occasions and to stand up and face my father and the Royal Court to defend Loki from being executed, I am happy to say that I believe she is truly worthy of courting one of royal blood." The God sipped from his mug, relishing in the high standard quality Stark constantly demanded from his own morning cup.  
  
Tony blinked. "I'm sorry, what? My daughter did what?"   
  
"She defended Loki-" Thor paused, expression furrowing at the younger male as he studied him. "I get the feeling there is a lot you're unaware of about your daughter's relationship with my brother, isn't there?"  
  
  
 **Elsewhere**  
There were times when Alex loved she was the daughter of a billionaire. It meant that there was practically anything she could ever want in her own home right at the touch of her fingertips. And there were times when she was happy she was so similar to her father, in ways such as, for example, both being film fanatics. Which made setting up her and Loki's first date much, much easier.  
  
They'd settled on a film in the private cinema room since leaving the compound so early after the press conference was clearly a bad idea. They'd both agreed to meet at the room at 8, dress casually, yadda yadda yadda.  
  
When it came to dressing casual, Alex ended up digging deep into her dad's walk-in closet for clothes that would look nice and fit the lanky god that was a good few inches taller than her father.  
  
 _"Because you'll make a better impression around the compound in earth clothes. And you're starting to stink."_ Is the answer the mechanic had given when asking about not being able to wear his regular suit or tunic. Loki had grunted at the explanation but had listened to Alex anyway before she went back to her own room to change out of her lab clothes.   
  
Loki stepped out of the shower, drying himself off with the towel laid out for him. Raven hair tumbled over his shoulders, sticking up unfashionably and with a few clumps of strands hanging over his sea-green eyes.  
  
 _"I think you'd look cute with short hair. And a hat. Not a flat cap or anything like that though. Like, a beanie or something."_ Alex's soft tone had suggested the day before when her father had questioned how Thor got anything done with his long hair. Loki welcomed the idea of his brother with a hair scrunchie or headband. Loki remembered having his hair shorter, around the time Thor first was banished for waging war on Jötunheimr. Since then, he had let it grow out. The first time he'd met his Songbird, he'd preferred to gel the raven locks back, but recently he had favoured a more natural style. Perhaps another change wouldn't be so bad.  
  
  
Alex pulled at her shirt, having changed tops three times. She didn't get why she was so bothered by it, considering she was in ripped-knee jeans and sneakers otherwise. But for some reason, her tops just didn't want to sit right. She'd grown. Or shrunk. Or maybe it was her imagination. Regardless, by the fifth shirt, one she'd received as a joke from Barton one year having the symbols of each of the 6 main Avengers printed on the front, she finally decided 'fuck it' and went with it, brushing through her straightened hair again before heading out to the cinema room.  
  
Not seeing Loki outside and checking her watch for being ten minutes late, she shrugged and opened the door to the room.  
  
Had Alex not fairly intimately known Loki, and seen him in different forms, she wouldn't have recognised him so quickly and instead be screaming 'intruder' at the figure she spotted. Instead, she blinked at the lanky god, dressed in plain black jeans, a dark green button-down with sleeves at his elbows, laced ankle boots and a leather jacket folded over the back of one of the sofas that had been pulled out to sit in front of the projector screen.  
  
Alex started, then stopped, then started again. "Whoa." Her eyes roamed up and down the figure sitting in normal, human, earth clothes, and looking damn good in them, too.   
  
"What?" The god raised an eyebrow, cooly, running a hand through his [shortened hair](https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/2096830362/loki_laufeyson_id__3_by_thepurpleharlequin93-d48yo1d.jpg) and standing. "I assumed you would like this appearance." Loki crossed his arms, mistaking her surprise for distaste.  
  
"No, no, I do! I do!" Alex waved her hands, stepping closer. "I swear I do, I really like it, in fact. I'm just... surprised, is all."  
  
"You always seem enamoured when I am in different forms than you've already seen." He fidgeted with his hands, thinking.  
  
"It's just because you look different, you look cute, in fact." She patted his shoulder twice, standing a pace in front of him. Loki placed a hand over hers, feeling the gentle warmth from her fingers, as his eyes glanced down at her own outfit, stopping at the sight of the shirt. Alex glanced down then back up with a chuckle. "It was the only thing I could find." She smiled, looking at him. Loki seemed to be glaring a little at the design. "You okay?"  
  
"Mjolnir is on your chest. My brother's symbol." He explained, staring at the top right symbol of the six.  
  
"It was a joke gift from Barton for Christmas." Alex tilted her head. The grip on her hand was tensing and relaxing periodically in rhythm. "I can go change if it really bothers you."  
  
"No. It's fine." His head moved back up, away from the shirt.  
  
"You sure?"  
  
"Yes." He insisted with a nod. Alex squinted her eyes, God of Lies after all, but moved on, moving their hands off his shoulder and leading him to sit down again on the sofa, fingers locked.  
  
"This is an action film since I usually hate romantic stuff and didn't know if you had a preference." Alex tapped on the screen built into her arm of the sofa, bringing the film up on the projector to the main menu. "I've seen it before and I think you'll enjoy it, but, we'll just have to see."  
  
"I'm sure it will be fine, Songbird." Loki insisted, relaxing in his seat as the opening credits rolled onscreen.  
  
  
 **Kitchen**  
"I do not know the full history but that is as much as I'm aware of between the two." Thor gently rubbed Tony's shoulder, pulling his stool closer to the mechanic's, having sat down halfway through Thor's long-winded explanation to drop his head in his hands. "I believe you may need a few minutes to mull this over."  
  
"You put my daughter in the face of danger multiple times," Tony grumbled into his hands.  
  
"To be fair, she did volunteer for most of those times," Thor responded, truthfully, still rubbing his shoulders until Stark batted the hand away. "Are you still unhappy that they have come to a match? Having fought alongside each other as Shield-Brother and Shield-Sister, saving each other's lives over and over? Are you not pleased with their clear devotion to each other?"  
  
"I'm still not happy about it. She's my... she's my little girl, Thor. No matter how old she gets, she will always be my little girl. I'm just afraid for her." Tony rubbed his face, taking deep breaths as he sat up straight.  
  
"As you should, being her father. Alex is a young woman and she trusts you with her life. And was also afraid of you finding out about her and my brother." Thor told him, to which Stark could only scoff in annoyed agreement. How else was he supposed to have reacted? "But she is a strong woman. Practically a princess. Well, a princess with a sharp blade and a sharper tongue. Possibly one even sharper than my brothers. She has put him into place a few times that I've seen, so I doubt she will let him manipulate her." Tony saw the smirk drawing itself across Thor's lips, smugly.  
  
"That's... comforting." Tony nodded gently, then shook his head with a dry laugh. "Starks. A stubborn lot, aren't we?"  
  
Thor nodded, frankly. "I'm inclined to agree, yes."  
  
  
 **Cinema room**  
The film was fairly average, but it was one of Alex's favourites. Spies and the like had always been her thing. It was a film she knew well.  
  
Which is why she cringed when she'd somehow forgotten about one specific scene when choosing the film for the night, right slap-bang in the middle of the running. The main characters had been chasing each other across the map, one always one step ahead of the other, until they finally ended up together to hash things out. But more feelings than anger were to come out of the fight.  
  
It was the... the- the sex scene.  
  
Alex stiffened up as the two began kissing, remembering the actions to come next and sinking down into the sofa, squishing up ever so slowly into her arm of the sofa as to not attract attention from her date.  
  
Loki, however, had not said too much throughout the movie. Whether it was out of respect or boredom Alex was unsure, and even now he wore an unreadable expression. And she hated it. Because she couldn't tell what he was thinking. She begged for a mutation to suddenly spring up on her with telepathic tendencies so she could hear what he was thinking as the two characters started... getting intimate.  
  
Alex cleared her throat, looking about as comfortable as Loki did when Hulk came out into the arena on Sakaar. But, as the scene grew lustier she kept her eyes on the screen in hopes it would be over faster. It didn't work. In fact, it just seemed to last longer.  
  
Eventually, though, the scene cut to the next day where both characters actually had clothing on and Alex relaxed, glancing once at Loki who's expression had obviously not changed in the slightest, leaning on his hand resting on the sofa arm. The mechanic relaxed, tension flooding back out of her body as she questioned why she was so awkward about it in the first place, comparing it to watching a sex scene with her father, and silently laughing at herself for being so uncomfortable about the whole thing.  
  
"That was not accurate."  
  
And then Loki had to ruin it.  
  
"What?" Alex turned to him.  
  
"That scene was not accurate as to how intercourse works," Loki responded, head turning to her.  
  
Alex blinked, not seriously believing the words were coming out of his mouth. Maybe she'd dozed off earlier and was having a really weird lucid dream? "How would you know?" She asked. Loki raised an eyebrow with an otherwise deadpanning expression. "You said you've never had a girlfriend or boyfriend in the past so how would you know that's not an accurate depiction of what happens?"  
  
"I may not have had a true partner in the past, but you forget where I grew up, Songbird. A land of celebration and love. And my brother has never had quite the same sense of shame as a regular individual would. Asgard's Palace walls are not as thin as one would assume. The things I have witnessed and experienced would make this look tame and boring." He replied cooly, mouth curling up slightly in humour at her widening eyes. "Not to mention mother... Frigga, among other named things, is the Goddess of Fertility." Alex scrunched her face and looked away. "You did ask." Loki chuckled.  
  
"You Asgardians are some strange fuckers." Alex picked up her drink off the coffee table and sipped her straw. "Figuratively and literally." She sipped again, shivering as more thoughts began to form in her mind. "What kind of stuff could you have gotten up to that makes this seem 'tame' or 'boring'?" She asked, before holding up a hand as Loki opened his mouth. "Actually, considering Sakaar, don't answer that. I really don't want to know."  
  
"Why are you reacting so shyly? You surely have had experience on the matter."  
  
The brunette raised an eyebrow. "That sounds insulting but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt just this once because it's true. Yes, I've had the experience, but it was never really more than 'just sex'. No strings. No feelings. Well, at least not returned ones." She put her drink back down with a sigh. "As I told you, I've never been 'in love' before, not properly. In that regard, you're my first other than a few romps with strangers in college. So, yeah, when I see scenes like this in films, I like to think it's real. And sometimes I feel like I'm missing out. It's romantic. A guy in the past has never tried romanticising me past flowers or a cheap gift they picked up ten minutes before meeting me." Alex folded her arms over herself, shaking her head. "I'm the daughter of a billionaire. I've grown up surrounded by all I could ever want. I don't care about the cheap plastic showy stuff. I..." She wet her lips, shaking her head and looking up to Loki. "I just want to be loved. And to be able to love someone else."  
  
He cupped his hand under her cheek, tilting her head up and pressing a swift but gentle kiss to her lips. "I understand." He stroked her cheek with his thumb, tenderly. Alex didn't doubt his understanding for a moment. "Allow me to romanticise you, treat you like a true warrior and princess. Allow yourself to be loved and to love someone who shares your sentiments." His voice was so calming Alex could have sworn he was using his Silver Tongue. But she knew what that felt like. This was genuine.  
  
Alex looked away. “It’s hard.”  
  
”I know.” Loki brought her head back to look at him.  
  
”You deserve better.”  
  
”I could not think of a single thing that would be better than allowing me to love you.” The god's free hand found her own, delicately sweeping it up into his palm and lacing their fingers together. “Allow me.” He breathed against her lips, kissing her cheek and remaining close to her ear. "Allow  _yourself_."  
  
Alex wrapped her free hand behind Loki's neck, pulling him into a proper kiss. Not a feather-light one with all pretence and questions, but a real kiss. Weeks of confused feelings for the both of them flooding out in one emotional go.  
  
Loki's hands shifted to her lips, gently lifting the girl to sit in his lap, bringing her closer when he was met with no protest. Alex embraced him, just allowing herself to feel what she was feeling; every kiss, every touch, every emotion. Loki held her like he was afraid to let go as they kissed. He was, in a way. He felt as if he didn't get this right, he would never have the same with anyone else. Alexandra, to him, was like a knife, the softness of her tone and humour on one side, but the harshness of her brightest features and quick wit on the other. And her kiss was a force to be reckoned with, a powerful pull comparable to his magic. Except she possessed no such powers as him. Only a heart that was possibly a little too forgiving for a monster like him.  
  
The movie was left long forgotten as the two were soon enough falling into a restful sleep on the sofa, entangled in one another's arms without a single care in the world. Or, at least this one, they supposed.


	55. Tree

**The next morning - 02:34am - 3rd Person POV**  
Waking up in a cold sweat was never an attractive look or feeling. Waking up in a cold sweat with azure skin and crimson eyes even less so. Or at least it was in Loki's opinion.  
  
It wasn't often the God suffered from night terrors. Even less commonly when he had the comfort of another. In fact, it was usually warded off when others were around o support him, and he knew others were around to support him. Now, specifically, the young mechanic cuddled up in his arms sleeping peacefully against his chest.  
  
The movie had long since finished, the room left in serene quiet save for Loki's forced breathing. His body was rigid, shaking his head to will away more unwanted thoughts and images while trying not to shift too much and wake his beloved.  
  
"Loki?"  
  
Not that it mattered. Unless she had passed out from over-tiredness, Alex was generally a light sleeper.  
  
The young mechanic stretched out as he willed away his blue skin and red eyes before she could make them out in the dark. "What time is it?" She could see shapes as she rubbed her blurry eyes, sitting up. "Friday, night lights please."  
  
On command, the lights to the room flickered on, but only on a half-dimmed setting as to not cause sudden nausea to either being. Alex shifted to sit up in Loki's lap, looking down at his state which had just managed to get the last tint of blue out of his skin by the time her eyes landed on him.  
  
"You alright, man?" Even in her groggy state, she could tell there was something that was bothering him, lying awkwardly against the arm of the sofa and looking highly uncomfortable and edgy.  
  
"Fine." He forced out.  
  
"You don't sound it." Alex furrowed her brow at the waver in his tone.  
  
 _"I believe Mr Laufeyson is suffering from the after-effects of a nightmare, Miss Callaway."_  Chirped the Irish AI, obediently, much to the scathing look Loki aimed at the ceiling for it.  
  
Alex looked back at the mischevious god. "That true?"  
  
"I'm fine." He insisted softly.  
  
"I'm not asking if you're fine, I'm asking if it's true." Alex reiterated, trying to see his complete face in the dimmed lights. "Lights up completely, FRIDAY."  
  
The lights came up as commanded, the two figures wincing as they did. But as the suddenness wore off, Callaway looked at Loki properly. He looked exhausted. Not tired. Exhausted. His face was tired, and Alex recognised the familiar sight of a sleepless Loki from those days in the bunker. And he looked very much as if he didn't want to be stared at like a specimen under the microscope by the mechanic. Even his body language was practically begging to get away from there.  
  
As Alex made to sit on the sofa instead of his thighs to help that feeling resolve, his hands shot out and gripped her hips, effectively stopping her. She blinked, focussing in on him as his grip grew increasingly tighter, then flinched like he'd been slapped, and pulled his hands back as if they burned on her skin.  
  
"You wanna talk about it?" Alex asked slowly, trying to look for a tell. Loki's eyes drifted away from her, skittering around on the walls like he was trying to focus on anything but her. The thing that hurt her most about that was the fact she knew what it was like to be on Loki's end of things in a situation like this.  
  
Luckily, she also knew how to calm it down. "Shall we go for a walk?"  
  
  
Leaving the compound after yesterday's media circus was refreshing, even if they only went out into the garden area surrounded by the compound's buildings. It was quiet, though that was to be expected at two in the morning, and both Loki and Alex were thankful for the privacy.  
  
Holding his colder hand in her palm, Callaway walked with the God down the paved path, just barely swinging their arms as they walked. It was good to clear the head after a nightmare, she knew, and she was glad they could both access the breath of fresh air this time.  
  
Loki had loosened up a little, though not much. His breathing was back to normal and he didn't feel the itch or urge to change into his Jotun form so he had that going for him. And the warm hand against his cooler palm was a welcome comfort. He usually dealt with the after effects of his nightmares alone, often turning to the library to bury himself in words or sneaking off to the training grounds to get in some throwing practice. So the additional person who understood what he was going through was a relief.  
  
"Now that is just begging to be climbed, don't you think?" Alex had stopped walking, Loki realised, as he was being nudged with an elbow. Following her line of sight, he spotted the large tree in the centre of the garden area, the centrepiece. It looked large and sturdy. Alex looked between Loki and the tree, smiling excitedly, but Loki didn't feel the energy to smile. "Eh, whatever." Her hand suddenly left his as she approached the tree, and with a small jump, grabbed onto the lowest branch to pull herself further up into the tree.  
  
Up and up she went until she found a study enough branch to perch on and look down at him, waving. "Come on up, Loki! The air is fine." She beckoned fairly loudly in the courtyard, and Loki didn't really do much but stare at her, though he could admit he was tempted. "Come on. Be a sport." She patted the branch beside her. Seeing no other way out of the situation other than walking away which he definitely didn't want to do without her at his side, he talked to the tree and began to climb. As he reached her branch, he felt a hand patting the shoulder of his leather jacket. "There you go. Are you sitting comfortably?" She chuckled softly and the god rolled his eyes.  
  
It fell quiet again. Though this time it seemed different. The rustling of the leaves of the tree, or what was left in the month of September, accompanied the silence as the two sat together, unable to lean back.  
  
"I fell into the void," Loki announced, abruptly.  
  
"Hm?"  
  
"In my night terror. It was my falling off the rainbow bridge and into the void that I saw." He explained further, voice almost completely devoid of emotion. Just stating a fact. "But, unlike usual when I have this nightmare, I see my father and Thor standing on the Bridge, watching me drop into the blackness. Sometimes even mother appears there to watch me fall." His juniper eyes flicked up to the sky, barely able to see the stars through the layer of pollution waving over above. "This time it was you. But you fell with me, and you landed in the hands of a monster waiting for us."  
  
"There is something out there. An evil darker than even I. I couldn't bear to see you in their hands, crying and hurting. You were fighting, but you were not strong enough. Nothing I have yet seen is stronger than that force. Nothing darker, and I couldn't stand it. I care for you so much, it frightens me. The hold you have on my heart. Of all the mortals and beings I have ever met, you are the only one who has made me practically powerless." He pulled his eyes back to look at hers, and they looked glassy.  
  
Alex's heart clenched at both the sight and his words. "What's the evil out there?"  
  
Loki picked up her hand, squeezing gently. "Something I cannot protect you from, other than staying here." He lifted her hand to his face, gently kissing the back of it before lowering them to the branch again, leaving their fingers locked.  
  
Alex swung her legs gently, not tempted to argue the point or question it further. It didn't sound like a good topic to discuss so early in the morning if it had to be discussed at all. "Its quiet out here. Peaceful." She said, conversationally, changing the subject, easily. Loki nodded softly. "Want to go back inside? Sneak some ice-cream from the kitchen or just go to bed?"  
  
"Apologies, Songbird, but I don't think I'm going to be happy company for the rest of the night... morning. Regardless of iced treats offered." The god refused softly, taking his hand back from where they were linked to fold his in his lap, instead.  
  
The mechanic thought quietly for a moment. It looked like they were going back to square one again, and it was pointless to do that. So, she had to do something and something that Loki would not be suspecting. "Well, if even ice-cream has been completely dismissed by a depressed Prince, there's only one thing for it." Alex rolled up the sleeves of her jacket, balling her fists and resting them on her hips. "Are you ticklish, Mischief?" She asked with an innocent smile.  
  
"What?" Loki furrowed his brow.  
  
"Let's find out."  
  
 _"What?"_  
  
Alex was on him quickly, reaching out to aim where she was usually most ticklish. He twitched slightly, and a smile tugged at his lips but he otherwise schooled himself from the shock of the sudden attack. Callaway pouted, sliding her fingers further down his sides until a bark of laughter broke from his mouth and she grinned, running her fingers over the same spot quicker and earning more hastily cut off yelps of laughter.  
  
"Alright, alright, I am ticklish there, Songbird." He quickly snatched her hands up into his grip, even when she tried tugging them out to continue her torture. The god raised an eyebrow, calmly, a smirk creeping onto his lips as an idea formed. "You're tempted to take advantage of that then? Well, in that case, by all means, please go ahead." Loki released her hands, holding his own up and out of the way in surrender. Alex squinted suspiciously at him at the sudden submission to her whims. His smirk remained. "Make me laugh till your heart's content, I won't stop you." Alex squinted even more suspiciously.  
  
He leaned closer to her face, volume dropping to a delicate whisper. "But be warned that I will get you back, whether it be tonight or another night." His breath ghosted her lips, and Alex felt a shiver run through her, though not from the night breeze. He sat back up straight, hands folded in his lap, looking as perfectly smug as his princely gait would allow. "Still tempted?" He raised an eyebrow, grinning happily.  
  
Alex didn't take long to answer. "Yep!"  
  
It took some work, finding all the right places and sensitive spots, but she eventually got him full belly-laughing at her antics. So much so they nearly fell off the tree branch together. That would have been a nice time explaining how she broke the other leg to her father. But, with the quick thinking of the God wrapping himself around the mechanic and hooking another leg onto a distant branch, the two caught themselves quickly, though the compound garden they faced was now upside down to view. The two glanced at each other briefly for a moment of shared shock before bursting into laughter and nearly falling again.  
  
Eventually, they did pull themselves back up. Loki's promise of revenge long forgotten by Alex, the two soon jumped out of the tree and headed inside to continue sleeping until a more reasonable time in the morning. This time, however, Alex invited Loki into her own bedroom, and after only half a second's protest, ended with sharing her bed to return to their previous embrace and sleep soundly.


	56. Epilogue

**Three months later - ~~December 16, 1991~~  December 31st - New Year's Eve**  
The party room was immaculate. No one would expect anything less from a Stark Charity Ball in the Avengers Headquarters.  
  
A gentle music playlist that wasn't too loud or drowned out by the murmurs of the guests kept the party going when the small talk died out. Fluorescent neon lights illuminated the room in a soft glow, calmly pushing away the darkness from outside the large floor to ceiling window overlooking the distant city. The room was alive with the anyone and everyone that had been lucky enough to receive an invitation to show themselves at the Stark event.  
  
Flooding the room, random strangers moved around with  _"Happy New Year!"s_  on their tongues and the free drinks on their minds. It wasn't overly crowded, just a few select people Stark deemed perfect party company that would laugh at the overplayed stories and provide the feeling of having other people to know except for who in the team even answered his calls anymore.  
  
Alex had invited Peter and Rosa to the gathering, of course, and both were happy to oblige as long as they could bring their respective family members. The mechanic's father commented it was good for her to be mixing with people more in her own age group rather than hundreds of decades years older than her. She simply rolled her eyes.  
  
Alex and Loki had decided to stick close, but try to avoid PDA at this party. It was risky at best to show affections surrounded by a sea of people, not all of whom could be considered too friendly. But, they made it work. And as it had been for the night, stealing and sharing glances across the room at each other, it worked.  
  
So, it didn't take long for Loki to notice the absence of his Songbird for longer than the time required for a bathroom break.  
  
He gave it a few minutes, then began asking around. Eventually, Rosa said she had probably stepped out to catch her breath as social functions had never been Alex's main priority or scene, and so he slipped out of the room and towards her usual , but stopped as he noticed a spare room open just a corridor down from the party room, close enough to still hear the thumping music.  
  
Loki peeked in, it was a simple room designed for sleeping with the usual adornments and a sliding door balcony that was opened with a figure standing by the railing.  
  
_`A million shards of glass_  
That haunt me from my past`  
  
Loki recognised the voice in a heartbeat. The sliding door was left open, and he could see her leaning out over the balcony, letting the breeze flow through her hair and dress in a gentle moonlit silhouette.  
  
_As the stars begin to gather_  
And the light begins to fade  
When all hope begins to shatter  
Know that I won't be afraid  
  
He slowly and quietly walked forward. It felt like the first time he'd heard her voice in the bunker. Except that this time, she knew he knew.

_`If I risk it all  
Could you break my fall?_

_How do I live? How do I breathe?_  
When you're not here I'm suffocating  
I want to feel love, run through my blood  
Tell me is this where I give it all up?`  
  
It wasn't perfect, it never was. But it wasn't atrocious, either. Pleasant enough to listen to but not enough to make a career out of. She wobbled on a few long-held notes, and he could hear in certain lyrics where she dropped to a lower note because there was absolutely no chance she was even going to attempt to reach those smug heights.  
  
_`For you, I have to risk it all..._  
'Cause the writing's on the wall`  
  
The last note lasted the longest, only a slight waver as she ran out of breath towards the end. Loki smiled gently, relaxing against the doorframe to watch her finish her performance with no knowledge of her live audience.  
  
"How long are you going to stand there gawking, Mischief?"  
  
_Busted_. Loki knew he shouldn't feel embarrassed for such a thing, but he still winced slightly as she announced she knew of his presence, turning to glance over her shoulder at the well-dressed figure.  
  
"Well, don't you look handsome?" She grinned as he stepped out onto the balcony floor.  
  
"Your father demanded I style myself appropriately. May I say your dress is very classy, as well?" He smiled, readjusting his rolled up sleeve on the left arm. The black jeans, matching button down unbuttoned on the top two, and ruffled short hair were indeed an attractive sight, especially in the dark light of the late evening. "Though, it could have included more green, however," Loki smirked.  
  
"Of course you'd say that, Mr My Chemical Romance." The mechanic rolled her eyes.  
  
"What's a 'My Chemical Romance'?" The god raised an eyebrow.  
  
Alex blinked. "I  _have_ to get you an iPod."  
  
The two fell into a comfortable silence, the joke fading away and leaving them to the sounds of the faint thumping party music and the gentle breeze that made Loki feel at home.  
  
"This type of party not like on Asgard or Sakaar, hm?" Her eyes followed the God as he approached the balcony railing.  
  
"I admit there are differences. Not everyone is as happy to be around me as they would be on other realms." He looked out to the garden as he spoke, shaking his head. "I cannot blame them though. They are much more smitten by your fellow Avengers, your father, and my brother. I can admit I miss the attention."  
  
"Why don't you wear your helmet then? Show everyone in there who's the boss?" The mechanic raised an eyebrow.  
  
Loki scoffed. "Why would I dare don that armour piece when not in a fight? And when you so blatantly make jest of it?"  
  
"I told you, I like your helmet."  
  
"You said it makes me look like a gay reindeer."  
  
"It does, though." Alex scrunched her face, nodding at him, much to the God's internal dismay. He would have preferred that jest from his brother than his Songbird. It would have been less wounding to his pride.  
  
A quick flash of hold and a solid item appeared in hand, but Alex didn't recognise what the object was until it was sitting on her head and covering the sides of her cheeks with cold, golden metal.  
  
"There. Now  _you_ are the gay..." Loki paused in his smug victory, smirk faltering. Alex brushed away a few locks of hair out of the way of her face to tuck into the side of the helmet, looking up the few inches taller he was with moonlit doe eyes.  
  
The helmet was a size too big for her, so the forehead slid down over her eyes, half covering the emerald green, but she looked undeniably beautiful in his armour. Fierce, like a warrior. He had seen her in fighting gear before, and on Sakaar she had borrowed a tunic of his, but his helmet was somehow different, it seemed more intimate.  
  
"Loki, I mean this in the nicest way possible, but you have a big head." Alex's voice broke him from his thoughts. The God grunted, and the helmet disappeared with a whoosh of air, leaving the mechanic's straightened hair to stick up. "Aw. I kinda liked wearing that." She flattened the brunette locks back down.  
  
Loki hesitated, remembering his original reason for seeking her out, and bit the inside of his lip. "I have something else to give you, Alex, that may make up for it."  
  
"Please say it's your shirt."  
  
"What?"  
  
"What?" Alex brushed it off quickly as Loki failed to realise what she had mumbled. "Go ahead. Tell me. Or give me, I suppose it would be in this case."  
  
A swirl of golden light glided out of his palm, forming a shape in the air before another solid item, similar to before, dropped down into his hand, caught by delicate fingers. "This is for you." He held up the chain to leave the square pendant adorned on it in view. It was a murky green background with a golden cat in the centre, its body lying down and curled around the shape of a golden bird, happily enjoying cuddling up to its company. "I've never seen you wear many accessories however I thought it was a 'classically romantic' gesture here on Midgard." He tried to explain as Alex stared at the item with a small, gently huff at the effort.  
  
"Did you buy this like the dress you gave me or make it yourself?"  
  
"I fashioned it. I thought a personal touch would be more appropriate."  
  
A necklace. He wanted to be romantic. That was sweet, especially since they hadn't been dating for that long and she had before talked about her hate for materialistic gifts and presents.  
  
But, the necklace suddenly reminded her of the first time she had come face-to-face with the glowstick of destiny.  
  
Alex started laughing. Loki felt his chest clench in misunderstanding shame.  
  
"Well, you don't have to be bluntly mocking about it." Loki furrowed his brow, preparing to make the gift vanish in green swirls.  
  
"No, no, no. No no, no. It's not that! I promise!" Alex waved her arms, quickly, grasping for Loki's wrists. "I swear, Loki, that's not why I'm laughing." She finished off with another giggle before forcing herself to calm down. "Look, remember when you first tried to take over my brain in that bunker when we first met?"  
  
"I recall."  
  
"Well, turns out the reason it didn't work was that I'd been wearing a metal-backed necklace underneath my shirt. SHIELD regulations said I couldn't wear it over clothing because I worked in the lab and things could happen. So when you tried, it hit the metal." She tapped her chest to indicate the spot.  
  
Loki squinted at her chest, humming. "I had questioned it. I assumed once I met your father perhaps you had been hiding the same model of a reactor in your chest as he did, but that was soon dismissed as I saw you on Sakaar in your very revealing outfit."  
  
"I knew you liked that outfit," Alex smirked, hands on her hips. "But, the point remains. That's why I was laughing. I think it's a lovely gift and I admire the thought." She reaffirmed, looking back at the necklace laid in his hand. Loki considered her words, and then made a gesture for her to turn around. But Alex instead picked up the gift and began attaching it around her neck herself at the appropriate length. "Don't suppose this will stop me from being mind-controlled, hm?" She asked, jokingly.  
  
"I considered enchanting it," Loki said, conversationally, "However, I thought perhaps without permission that would be overstepping a boundary or force you to not want to wear it for that reason."  
  
"I'm not afraid of your magic, Mischief. Or you." She slid the pendant around to her chest and hid the linked part of the chain behind her neck.  
  
"Why don't I scare you?" Loki squinted at her, eyes beginning to glow a soft crimson red, skin turning over to azure. She hummed, confused. The god took a step towards her, breaking into her personal space. And then continued walking as she backed up in matching steps. "What makes you think you're safe with me? Why can you fall asleep so easily in my presence? In my arms? Let me hold you with hands that have murdered and killed?"  
  
Alex's back hit the balcony and she stopped. Loki leaned down, hands resting on the railing, body bracketing her and pinning her to her spot. His eyes were still gleaming with that red hue, skin glowing ice blue. Threatening, but not angry. More warning.   
  
The mechanic looked at him without fear. "The same reason my dad doesn't scare me. My father has a lot of blood on his hands too, a dark past. But he turned it around, and I couldn't be prouder to be his daughter." She folded her arms over her chest. "It all depends on the context. I mean, have you killed any innocent bystanders since New York?" Her question gained a shake of the head from the God. "See?"   
  
Her finger reached up to play with the necklace, eyes glancing away. "Or maybe I'm just naive. I have a generally forgiving nature anyway which can equally be my best quality and my worst."  
  
Loki didn't remove his arms from around her but leaned out of her space a little, his eyes softening to a green and skin returning to alabaster. It gave Alex enough room to turn around and stare out at the city, but lean gently back into him as to indicate she wasn't ignoring him. "I meant it when I told you I believed you could have been a Valkyrie of Asgard had circumstances been different," The Prince claimed. "You would have been a strong Queen of Asgard, too. I'm sure no one would have argued if they knew you the way I do."  
  
Alex chuckled gently, arms folding over her body in a hugging motion. "Well, it's not easy to kick someone's ass in four-inch heels, Loki." She winked at him, and the God chuckled.  
  
"I'm sure you could somehow manage it." He pressed a gentle kiss to her cheek, naturally chilled, but the subconscious thought of warmth accompanied it. Alex turned her head and kissed him properly, it was brief but no less passionate than any they'd had before. "Though, I suppose you don't have to be on Asgard to be a queen, Songbird."  
  
"This sounds an awful lot like a proposal speech." Callaway squinted at him, slightly teasing.  
  
"Perhaps one day, not tonight."  
  
Not before he could prove to himself he wasn't a monster, not before he could believe everything his Songbird continued to tell him. Not until he saw the good in his heart.  
  
"I'm merely commenting on how you appear in my eyes." He responded as their eyes met.  
  
Alex clicked her tongue. "You're a romantically sappy bastard sometimes, you know that, right?"  
  
"I thought I was supposed to be a 'romantic piece of shit', Songbird."  
  
"Shut up before I kiss you again, Mischief."  
  
  
**THE END**


End file.
